In this wide-ranging interview, Tonga Tala goal shooter Uneeq Palavi opens up about the extraordinary journey that has taken her team from relative obscurity to the cusp of the world's elite. Palavi, who was the fourth-highest scorer at the 2023 Netball World Cup in Cape Town with 238 goals, speaks with palpable emotion about what the Tala's rise means for the people of Tonga — from the communities back home in Nuku'alofa to the Pacific diaspora communities in Australia and New Zealand who fill arenas in their thousands whenever the team takes the court.
Palavi discusses the pivotal role of head coach Jaqua Pori-Makea-Simpson in transforming the programme, the significance of Queen Nanasipau'u bestowing the name "Tonga Tala" on the team, and what it felt like to qualify for the Commonwealth Games for the first time. Looking ahead to the 2027 World Cup, she is characteristically forthright about the team's ambitions, declaring that a top-six finish in Sydney is the target. "Every time we step on that court, we carry the hopes of an entire nation," she says. "We want every young girl in Tonga to look at us and know that anything is possible."
