Kowalewska Returns!

Now going into the fourth season of her second spell with Storm, having returned from Celtic Dragons in 2016, Lorraine has long been a vital presence in the defensive third, and the 35-year-old is excited about what the future holds.

“The team ethos is amazing, we have a great family here,” she smiles. “We’ve got a good team, we work hard, and we all support each other. We all want to improve and do well this season.

“We’re aiming for top four and I think we’ve definitely got a good chance of that.”

Within that, there is also room for personal growth, as Lorraine continues to set herself exacting standards after an impressive 2019 season. “I’m a bit of a perfectionist. It’s not always going to go completely right, but I feel like I’ve learned a lot in the last few seasons, and I can keep building on that. I want to just get better and better.”

Despite continuing to juggle family commitments alongside her netball career, Lorraine’s decision to return to Storm was surprisingly simple.

“I’ve got my daughter and my husband to consider, but I really wanted to play and have a good season. There were great spells, and moments of greatness last season, but I think that we were slightly unfortunate in where we finished. It’s good to be back with the new set-up that we have and build on what we’ve started.”“I’m super excited and looking forward to working with Lorraine again,” enthused Director of Netball, Mikki Austin. “We had a conversation about whether it was the right time for her to potentially end her netball career, and I think that would have been a real shame.

“Lorraine is playing some of the absolute best netball of her career and I think it would have been a travesty if she’d ended without a goodbye or a send-off. She’s in arguably the shape of her life and is making a real conscious push for netball to be at the forefront of everything she does, and hopefully we can reap the benefits.”