It has been a challenging couple of years for Samantha Wallace, after a serious injury threatened her career to the point where she was left questioning her future in the sport.

The Trinidad and Tobago native, who represents New South Wales Swifts in the Suncorp Super Netball League, was delivered news that any athlete dreads, especially during the high point of their career.  

“The surgeon said, 'I don't think you'll be returning to netball,'” Wallace revealed.

That news from the surgeon was as a result of a knee injury Wallace picked up in Round one of the 2022 season, when she damaged her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), medial collateral ligament (MCL) and meniscus. At that point, Wallace was the Swifts' leading goal scorer with a tally of 585 goals at 93 per cent accuracy for the 2021 season in which they were crowned champions.

It has now been more than 700 days since Wallace last paraded her skills in a competitive netball game, but that will change when the 2024 season gets under way in April, as the 30-year-old is out to not only prove the surgeon wrong, but more importantly, to defy the odds in a demonstration of stubborn determination and sheer will to succeed.

“It's a bit bittersweet and a bit emotional (being back) and the expectations in my head. Will I be good enough? Will I be the Samantha I used to be? So many fans and young kids are waiting for my return. I'm trying not to put all that expectation on myself,” Wallace said.

"[But] I'm finally back on court, I just want to take each day one step at a time and try not to think about the outcome, but the process," she added.

Reflecting on her journey back from the proverbial wilderness, Wallace pointed out that it was during the latter stages of recovery that she was hit hardest, both mentally and physically.

“I thought I would've been back last year. After my surgery, I was doing well, but then I was told I needed a clean out.  I didn't understand why because I thought I was doing really well in my recovery. The swelling was still there but I was able to squat, and I was walking okay, but after I did my clean out that October or November, I went backwards," Wallace shared.

Motivated by her faith, with support from her family, friends, teammates, and her own desire not to end her career in that manner, Wallace kept going.  

"I felt like giving up. I felt like I can't keep going through this, especially after my first year of rehab and the initial thought of coming back the next year and then having that taken away,” she said. 

“That was my breaking point, the first year of rehab was fine. I just had to deal with it, that happens, it's sport but the second year of rehab, I was like holy moly. I'm ready to quit. I wasn't seeing any progress in the gym, no matter how many leg extensions, presses and squats I did, there was no results until I got a cortisone injection. That's when my knee started settling, the swelling disappeared and I was starting to see muscle build in my leg,” Wallace recollected. 

The only silver lining to the injury was that it allowed Wallace time to reconsider goals and targets that she has outside of netball, one being to branch off into early childhood education.

"The injury was bad, but it actually made me sit for once, reflecting on my life as an individual and what I want to do after netball. I love kids, I'm always with someone's kid after games. I don't know whose kid it is; I just end up with some random baby girl,” she said.

Though she missed out on representing Trinidad and Tobago at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and the Netball World Cup, Wallace has no regrets about taking the time to ensure a proper recovery for a Suncorp Super Netball return.

In fact, she is now eager to get back in action and reunite with teammates on court, especially after watching her Briony Akle-coached Swifts fall just short of last year’s premiership.

“It's heartbreaking. Romelda [Aiken-George] came in and did an awesome job and she was shocked because when Briony gave her the call she wasn't expecting to be full-time.

“What I love and appreciate about her [Aiken-George] is she checked in to see if I was okay with her replacing me and I was like ‘Hell yes! You are a legend, you've been in this game for so long no one else can replace me,” she added.

"Playing with these girls means so much because these girls rally around me,” Wallace ended.