- As part of Samoan Language Week, which runs from Sunday 29 May to Saturday 4 June, you can also read this story in Samoan, here.
What do netball Bronco tests and police Physical Appraisal Tests (PAT) have in common? Both can help you get fit for life as a high-performing netballer and a high-performing cop.
In sport, Bronco - shuttle fitness - tests help keep athletes on top of their game. The PAT test ensures Police recruits have the high level of fitness required for frontline duties.
“The Bronco test surprisingly translates well to the PAT,” says Constable Eseta Autagavaia, a top netballer now four years into her Police career. “It helped me as a police trainee to sustain my fitness.”
Eseta is from a big Samoan family of six girls and two boys. Although she’s not fluent in the Samoan language, she knows a few words from family life – particularly from when she or her siblings were naughty.
Netball has always been in the mix. Her parents didn’t know what to do with all their children on the weekends so signed Eseta and her twin sister up for netball from the age of four - and Eseta has loved the sport ever since.
Since graduating from the Royal New Zealand Police College in 2018, she’s been working solidly on passing the probationary period of her policing career, and on her netball career.
“Netball New Zealand and Police are looking for good players and good police officers,” she says. “The players and constables have similar values and netball can be a great gateway for joining Police.”
Police has enabled Eseta to work flexible hours to suit her training schedule and she’s managing the juggle of full-time work and full-time training.
Playing usually as a shooter for the Robinhood Northern Comets team she has been pulled in as a replacement player for the Robinhood Northern Stars and will finish the ANZ Premiership season with the Splice Construction Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic. Following that she will re-join her Netball Samoa National Team and our own national Police netball tournaments.
“Joining Police was always my ‘dream’ job. I wanted to get a degree first and then come back to it, but I became too impatient and applied at the back end of a netball season with Wellington in 2017.
“A good friend of mine and netball team mate – Sergeant Kushla Dunning – told me some great work stories and I was always intrigued and thought ‘That might be a bit of me.’
“I am really fortunate to have been granted Flexible Employment Opportunities, where I work a Monday to Friday early shift roster and rotate through the various Public Safety Teams on the front line.
"I train every morning, go to work, then train in the evenings. It’s a very hard schedule but I’m lucky I have a supportive station who understand my commitments outside of work.”
Eseta says transferring from netball teamwork to policing teamwork was seamless. Both require mental resilience for high-pressure situations and physical resilience to push through performance boundaries.
"I've found both mental and physical fitness important in high-stress situations, like top netball or police work, when you’re in the thick of it,” she says.
Her advice to keen netballers or potential recruits? “Get out on that netball court and get into running. Incorporating High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) among your fitness helps prime the body for the Police Physical Competency Test.
“I’ll certainly be keeping up my training in the lead-up to preparation for the Netball World Cup in South Africa 2023 – it’s full-on and very exciting.”
Netball New Zealand Head of Commercial David Cooper said Eseta’s story of combining a career with the police while still playing semi-professional netball was a great inspiration for others.
“Being able to combine the two careers is a great option for our netballers, especially when you can see how supportive Police have been to enable flexible hours. This is perfect example of why our partnership with Police continues to be so strong and make so much sense”, he said.
Police has a long-term recruitment partnership with Netball NZ. Find out more on the newcops website.
Manuia e maua i taaloga ma leoleog
O le ā le mea e tutusa ai siaki a le au netipolo a Bronco ma Physical Appraisal Tests (PAT) e faia e leoleo? E tutusa uma i le mafai ona fesoasoani ia maualuga le malosi e te taalo netipolo ai ma maualuga le malosi e avea ai ma leoleo.
I taaloga, Bronco - shuttle fitness - o siaki ina ia faatumau ai pea le tulaga sili ona lelei o tagata taaalo ia latou taaloga. O le siaki PAT test e faamautinoa ai o loo iai i le tulaga maualuga le malosi e moomia o i latou ua faafaigaluega e avea ma Leoleo mo le faatinoga o tiute e tatau ona auai tino e faataunuu.
“E fesootai lelei o siaki e fai e le Bronco ma le PAT,” saunoa ai le tamaitai Malu o le Malo, Constable Eseta Autagavaia, o ia foi o se tamaitai iloga i le taaloga netipolo ae ua fā nei tausaga talu ona galue o se Leoleo. “Na fesoasoani e faatumau ai pea lo‘u malosi i le vaitaimi na faia ai a‘u aoaoga faaleoleo."
O Eseta e tupuga mai se aiga Samoa toatele, e to‘aono teine ma tama e to‘alua. E ui e lē matuā lelei tele lana tautala faa-Samoa, ae ua ia iloa ni nai upu mai le olaga faaleaiga – mai vaitaimi o le ulavale faatamaitiiti ai ma ona tei.
E iai lava lona fiafiaga i le netipolo. Sa tau saili e ona matua meafai e faafiafia ai ia ma ona tei i le faaiuga o le vaiaso ma o le fa o ona tausaga na amata ave ai Eseta ma lona uso masaga e taalo netipolo - na amata mai ai lava i lena taimi le naunau o Eseta i lea taaloga.
Talu ona ia faauu mai le Royal New Zealand Police College i le 2018, o loo galue malosi ina ia faamae‘a lelei lona vaitaimi o loo vaavaaia ai le faatinoga o galuega faaleoleo, faapea le netipolo.
“O loo saili e le Netball New Zealand ma le Ofisa o Leoleo tagata e lelei le taalo ma e lelei i le faaleoleo” saunoa ai Eseta. “E tai tutusa lava agatausili a tagata taaalo ma malu o le malo, ma e mafai ona avea le taalo netipolo o se faitotoa sili ona lelei e ofi atu ai i le galuega faa-Leoleo.”
O le galuega a Eseta o se malu o le malo ua mafai ai ona fetuutuuna‘i ona taimi ina ia fetaui ma le faasologa o ana toleniga, ma ua mafai ai lava ona ia fetuutuuna‘i taimi o lana galuega tumau ma ana toleniga.
Ona e masani ona taalo i le tulaga togi polo (shooter) mo le ‘au a le Robinhood Northern Comets, na ave ai e taalo o se tasi e suitulaga i se tagata taalo mo le ‘au a le Robinhood Northern Stars ma o le a latou faamae‘a ai le taamilosaga a le ANZ Premiership i le latou taaloga ma le Splice Construction Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic. Pe a mae‘a lena, ona toe faatasi atu foi lea e taalo i lana ‘au le Netball Samoa National Team faapea ma a tatou lava taamilosaga netipolo a Leoleo i totonu o le atunuu.
“Na ou ‘moemiti‘ lava e avea a‘u ma Leoleo. Sa ou manao e maua muamua so‘u tikeri ona ou toe foi mai lea i ai, ae ua lē mafai lo‘u naunau tele na ou toe talosaga ai a o lata i le faaiuga o le taamilosaga netipolo ma Ueligitone i le 2017.
“E iai si a‘u uo lelei ma te taaalo netipolo faatasi – o Sergeant Kushla Dunning – na tala ai ia te a‘u i mea mananaia na faaosofia ai lava lo‘u manatu ‘E ono faapena foi a‘u.’
“O le mea ou te faaamuia ai a‘u o le Flexible Employment Opportunities (FEO), ua mafai ai ona ou faigaluega mai le Aso Gafua i le Aso Faraile e auaua‘i i sifi muamua o le taeao ona toe faasolo ai lava lea faapea i Public Safety Teams e auai tino e faataunuu galuega.
“E muamua lava fai a‘u toleniga i le taeao, faato‘ā usu ai i le galuega, ona toe toleni foi lea i le afiafi. O se faasologa faigata, ae ou te faaamuia i le lagolagosua a la‘u galuega i a‘u meafai e ese mai le galuega.
Fai mai Eseta sa faigofie fesuia‘iga mai le netipolo i galuega faaleoleo. E moomia uma ai le maumaua‘i o le mafaufau mo tulaga e saputu ai le tele o mea e mamafa ai le mafaufau ma le malosi i le tino e finau ai i tulaga e faalavelavea ai taumafaiga.
“Ua ou iloa le tāua tele o le malosi o le mafaufau ma le tino e tali atu ai i tulaga e matuā lagona ai le mafatia, e pei o taaloga netipolo poo galuega faaleoleo, pe a faateteleina tulaga faigata nei,” saunoa ai Eseta.
O le ā sana fautuaga i ē fiafia i le netipolo poo fia avea ma leoleo? “Se alu i le malae netipolo ma amata tamo‘e solo! E fesoasoani le fai faatasi o le High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) ma au toleniga e faamasani ai lou tino mo le Police Physical Competency Test.
“O le a mautinoa lava le faaauau o a‘u toleniga a o agai atu i tapenapenaga mo le Netball World Cup i Aferika i Saute i le 2023 – e matuā pisi lava ma manaia tele.”
Na ta‘ua e le Netball New Zealand Head of Commercial David Cooper e faapea, o le olaga galue a Eseta fai faatasi ma taaloga netipolo faapolofesa o se tala e faaosofia ai le fia saili manuia i isi.
“O le mafai ona fai faatasi o galuega e lua o se filiiliga sili ona lelei mo a tatou tagata o taaalo netipolo, aemaise pe a e vaai atu i le lagolagosua a Leoleo i le fetuutuuna‘i o itula faigaluega, o le faaaoaoga sili lenei o le mafuaaga o loo faaauau ai pea ona mausalī ma talafeagai la tatou faiga faapaaga ma Leoleo,” o lana saunoaga lea.
Ua leva ona iai le faiga faapaaga a le Ofisa o Leoleo ma le Netball NZ. E maua nisi faamatalaga i le.