Stacey Marinkovich: Pressure, pride and the pursuit of Commonwealth Games gold

The Diamonds dress comes with expectations.

Not hopes, not possibilities, but pressure.

Every generation is expected to win.

Every tournament is expected to end with gold.

Every coach is expected to maintain a standard built over decades.

Stacey Marinkovich understands exactly what that means.

Next month, the Australian coach will lead her side into another Commonwealth Games campaign carrying the weight that follows every Diamonds squad before them.

But this particular team is chasing something even Australian netball's most celebrated eras could not achieve: defending both a Commonwealth Games and World Cup title in consecutive major tournaments.

The challenge is enormous and the preparation window is microscopic.

All the while, the rest of the world has never been closer.

"I think this is the most intense, most competitive international netball has been," Marinkovich said.

"For us, we've got our feet firmly on the ground because we have lost to an England in the past, and a Jamaica and a New Zealand.

Perhaps that is why the 45-year-old coaches with both ambition and caution.

Marinkovich talks constantly about evolution, collaboration and connection — words shaped by a lifetime spent inside the sport.

Long before she was appointed the 15th Diamonds coach — a role responsible for protecting Australia's netball legacy — Marinkovich told ABC Sport she was just a young girl in Brisbane who simply loved the game.

She plied her craft at Metro District Netball Association, where her father, Glenn Rosman, served as chairman.

She idolised Australian greats Vicki Wilson and Michelle den Dekker and dreamed of one day becoming a Diamond herself.

"When she was young, in her first couple of training sessions, she asked about joining the Australian team," Rosman said.

"She's always had that ambition and drive, more so than any other kid I've known."

Squad selection 

Now she's using those qualities for some of her greatest coaching challenges, which only present while at the helm of a national sporting team.

Unlike professional club programs that spend months together, Marinkovich often has just days to mould a squad into a gold-medal-winning outfit.

"We'll have four training sessions in Melbourne and then another four in Edinburgh as a group together, before the games start in Glasgow next month," she says.

And there'll be no "easing" into their Commonwealth Games campaign — they play Tonga on day one, followed by England just 24 hours later.

Hitting the ground running is why there's such great emphasis on Marinkovich and her selectors to nail the make-up of the side they will take over.

This week, the 2026-27 Diamonds squad of 18 players and four invitees was unveiled. Later this month a final cut of 12 players will confirm who travels to Glasgow.

Injuries, versatility and combinations all become critical considerations in a condensed nine-day tournament where there is little room for error, up to seven matches played and no replacement options once competition begins.

"You're going through all the what-ifs," Marinkovich said.

"I think the part that sits on my shoulders is making sure that we've got the right mix of players for the right tournament.

"If this player went down and we're left with 11 players to play, how much rotation have we got?"

Performances in Super Netball don't always guarantee selection.

"To pluck someone out that is in the best form but never played against an international opposition or played in connection with others … you've really got to have a good understanding of how you're going to be able to manage that," Marinkovich said.

The phone calls, she says, are always the toughest part of the job.

"You're making players' dreams come true by saying that you're in and then you're pretty much taking that dream away when you're having to make the other call," she said.

"It's a highly emotional [call] and just really respectful to the players, they invest a lot of time

"It's just making sure the conversations are honest, they're authentic and they're real … that's just the nature of the job."

Sophie Dwyer, who debuted under Marinkovich four years ago and was named in this year's Diamonds squad, said the feedback is constant.

"Even during the Super Netball season, she is always touching base with the Australian players and giving her insights to the game and what we can grow on," Dwyer said.

"My game has evolved so much under her and the staff."

Humble beginnings

Marinkovich understands the importance of those conversations because she was a player herself.

After starting her career with the Queensland Firebirds, the mid-courter headed west, playing for the Perth Orioles from 2002-07, before being the inaugural captain of the West Coast Fever in 2008.

Coaching followed naturally.

By 2015, she was leading the Fever from the sideline, transforming the club into a powerhouse before being appointed Diamonds coach in 2020.

But unlike many elite athletes today, her pathway through sport was never financially comfortable.

While playing professionally, Marinkovich also worked full-time in insurance broking.

She believes those years balancing the sporting bubble with the corporate world became one of her greatest advantages, sharpening her leadership style, her communication skills and her ability to adapt.

Her coaching philosophy has also been shaped by influences beyond netball.

During her years in Western Australia, she learned from former West Coast Eagles high performance manager Glenn Stewart.

More recently, through the Australian Institute of Sport, she regularly meets and connects with coaches from diving, sailing, hockey and other sports, sharing challenges in what she describes as an often secluded profession.

"It's a job that's quite isolating because you are in a de-centralised program," she said.

Although Netball Australia's operations are mostly in Melbourne, Marinkovich is based in Brisbane, where she returned after years in Western Australia to be closer to family.

The move became even more important after son Matthew was born six years ago.

"I think it's important that I've got a place where I can switch off from netball and keep perspective, because it's a high-pressure environment, high-performance sport," she said.

"I'm comfortable here … I know that when I'm at home, I can be mum, but when I'm on the road and you're away for six weeks, I know that Matthew is well supported at the same time.

"It just gives me permission to go and strive and be my best within the Diamonds environment."

And Marinkovich is hopeful her tenure is far from over.

Contracted until the end of 2027, she wants to stay on but is acutely aware success and evolution will be what decides her fate beyond that.

"We want the trophies in the cabinet," she said.