Teen Netball Star Shines for Tonga | Christchurch News

Nineteen-year-old Leila Tuinukuafe is set to make her senior international debut for Tonga at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, stepping into a new mid-court role despite being a goal attack for her club. Called up as a surprise, she’s balancing university studies in psychology with elite netball, driven by her netball dreams. Facing Australia in her opener — including idols like Courtney Bruce and Jamie-Lee Price — she embraces the challenge as a chance to get the toughest game out of the way early. Tonga’s tournament path includes back-to-back matches against South Africa and Northern Ireland, followed by England and Malawi, with a top-two finish needed to reach the semi-finals. If they miss out, they’ll face a team from the other pool — including New Zealand — for final placement. Tuinukuafe departs for Sydney on July 12 to join the squad before the Games begin July 25. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/796270c6287d0434