Tahlia has been involved in netball since she was seven, playing for her primary school team put together by her mother.
She began her umpiring journey at 13, falling in love with it very quickly and now has held the position of President of the Zodiacs Netball Club for five years.
“I basically spend all my Saturdays down at the courts,” she said.
Tahlia’s success in umpiring earnt her a spot in the SSN umpiring program called the High-Performance Umpire Squad, making her debut during the 2025 Team Girls Cup.
“I went into it going no one has any expectations of me right now, so just do what I can do,” she said.
“I was nervous but also so excited for the opportunity.”
Tahlia impressed with her natural skill and was allocated a game as part of the first round of the 2025 SSN season.
In a devastating turn, she found out the night before that she had a high-grade stress fracture in her foot, taking away a dream that was so close to fruition.
“I had to stay off it for six weeks, then it was 10 and then 12, and I just didn’t get back onto it this year,” she said.
“Whilst it was really tricky, I had some really great people around me to lean on. Netball WA have so many amazing resources and staff that supported me.”
Her life motto helped her through the tough journey of rehabilitation.
“Going through that experience, I just focused on the little things to celebrate,” she said.
“I remember the first time jumping in months and I was like: ‘oh my god I can jump again!’ I’ll go down to netball and tell everyone I’m hopping again to celebrate.
“You’ll look back at when you were saying you hated running and just wish you could.”
On top of her duties as an elite umpire, Tahlia is also involved in the umpire development program at Southern Districts Netball Association, she coaches a team and has been President of her Club since she was 20.
“I’m the youngest person to have done it, but it feels right because we have such a family culture, we all work together,” she said.
“I wouldn't have been able to do it without the other people that put in the effort around me and before me.”
Tahlia’s heavy involvement in the sport means she is a familiar face to many within Netball WA.
After a year of immense hard work, Netball WA are proud to say that Tahlia has been invited into the Netball Australia Talent Identified Squad for 2026.
