Communication and community spirit keeping Jolliffes going at 'Gullie

Collingullie-Glenfield Park couple Olivia and Steven Jolliffe are pretty busy come game day, but they've never been too concerned about where their daughters are, knowing they'll be well looked after by their Demons community.

The A grade playing coach and first grade captain spend most of their week down at the club, and are determined to take their sides further into finals, if only to keep the girls happy.

Returning to his junior club in 2022, Steven was eager to bring Olivia into his home-town world.

When the two met, they were playing on opposing clubs on the border, but when a job change opened her weekends again, Steven was quick to convince Olivia to return to the court.

"When we first met, we were at opposite clubs, she was at Albury and I was at Wodonga Raiders," Steven said.

"We did that for quite a while actually and this is the first time that we've ever played at same club.

"This is my home club, we only live five minutes down the road and last year playing, Liv's job didn't help the situation with being able to play netball, so we had a change of jobs and now she was able to commit to playing, so I might have convinced Liv into coaching as well.

"I was a junior here, so it's a 360 moment, and I love that I have my whole family here, that's what I wanted."

Balancing work, kids, and club commitments, the pair said they've had to be open and conscious with each other throughout the year.

Clear communication and respect each way for both the teams has been key in keeping the Jolliffe family ship sailing smooth.

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"I would say, I have a very supportive husband and a very supportive father- and mother-in-law and sister-in-law that take the reins with these two more often than not when I'm at training and Steve's at training," Olivia said.

"I think we both have good communication in terms of if he needs to come up to training early for whatever reason, and vice versa with me.

"It is a big commitment, I think when you're running preseason from the year before in December and then we're still playing in September, it's a lot of commitment.

"Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday for the last eight months we've been here, it has been rewarding, but also challenging."

With A grade playing at 1:30 and first grade at 2:10, the couple aren't juggling just their own schedules, but that of their two daughters as well.

Olivia said the country club atmosphere has made not only her feel welcome, but their children too.

With no concern for where they are, she said the family and community support they've received to take on their respective roles has been second to none.

"The girls love getting their kit on, they love shouting from the sidelines, albeit some profanity accidents, but they love being around the sidelines here," Olivia said.

"I think it's such a country football netball thing where it takes a village, and the kids are here and running around and having fun, and you feel safe, and they feel safe and and trusted to be supported by other people within the football netball club.

"So while I'm playing netball and Steve's playing football, it's a good hour and a bit that other people are looking after our children, not just our parents but literally whether it's junior girls, 16 or 17-year-old girls, or any of the old fellas that know the girls and say hi to them and give them a high five, it's a beautiful club to be a part of a great, a great atmosphere with the kids."

With mum and dad's mood heavily weighing on each weekend's results, it's always a good weekend for Ivy and Sage when there's a double win.

Heading into this weekend's elimination finals, both Olivia and Steve are confident their sides have what it takes to win.

And with no household rivalries, they'll be cheering from their respective games for each other.

"We love a bit of healthy competition," Olivia said.

"I love to win, you love to win," Steven said.

"We hate losing, more than we love winning," Olivia said.

"For us, it's the theme of the week, if it's a win or a loss, that's the attitude for the next three or four days."

"We're a very happy household if we both win," Steven said.

Playing Wagga Tigers, with two wins over them under their belt for the year, Olivia is confident her side has what it takes.

Expecting a tough game, she's not underestimating the power of the young Tigers out on court.

"We know that it's going to be a very challenging, finals are just a different season, nerves play a part, you wipe the scoreboard clear and it's putting your best efforts out on court," she said.

"We know that Tigers are physical, we know that they have some really strong defenders in the mix, they've got young attackers but accurate attackers, so for us, it's really going to be sticking to what we've developed this season in our game plan and making sure that we execute that on Sunday, with minimal unforced errors."

Across on the field, Steven is also yet to suffer a loss to opposition Coolamon this season.

After swinging in and out of finals contention, the footy Gods shone down on the Demons last weekend, to secure them their position.

"We just have to keep putting our best foot forward, we played finals last year which gave a lot of these younger blokes a feeling of what this all about," Steven said.

"So they know how to bring the pressure and bring the attack on the football.

"We struggled in that we've had a lot of injuries which doesn't help, but then when we get our full team on the park, we're pretty handy.

"So for us, our focus will be the four-quarter game of footy, just leave nothing in the tank, leave it all out there, everyone needs to be getting under and really contesting the football."

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