Victorian umpire, Nicole Bullen accomplished an incredible milestone in her career when she umpired her first Suncorp Super Netball match, in the round 10 match between the Melbourne Vixens and NSW Swifts.
Nicole has devoted her weekends and weeknights to umpire the game she loves for 13 years, taking on opportunities to umpire across Australia.
When did you first start umpiring netball?
I started umpiring netball at Parkville Netball competitions in 2008. From there I worked my way up to umpire their premier netball competitions on Tuesday nights and then I was awarded my B-Badge in 2015.
At the end of 2016 I decided to trial for the B Squad for the 2017 season and I was successful. I was lucky enough to umpire the whole VNL season in 2017. I started in 19&Us and worked my way up to Division 1 by the end of the season.
In 2018, I was lucky enough to work alongside Mark Henning as part of the targeted umpire’s program and managed to umpire championships for the entire season. At the end of the season in the final round I was awarded my A-Badge which was really exciting!
From there, I was elected to represent Victoria at the National Netball Championships in 2019 which were held in Brisbane. I was then selected for the Netball Australia Emerging Talent Umpire Squad and was lucky enough to umpire the ANL season in 2019.
Unfortunately, 2020 put a hold on my umpiring as a result of COVID-19. I was meant to go to Tasmania and represent Victoria again at Nationals, but sadly that was cancelled.
This year, I was selected to go back to Tasmania for Nationals but unfortunately that was then cancelled again. At the end of June this year, I was asked to reserve two SSN games. One was on the Sunshine Coast and the other was here in Melbourne.
How did you receive the news about making your debut?
I was actually just sitting on the couch at home, watching TV and scrolling through my phone waiting for the elections email to come through. I was hoping I would be elected to reserve another game as I really enjoyed the previous two weeks. When I scrolled through the email, I couldn’t find my name on the reserve list. It suddenly hit me that I had been elected to umpire that weekend in Melbourne. I was really excited, but still had to keep a lid on it to make sure I didn’t get too worked up about it all and that I maintained my focus for the big week ahead.
What is your game day preparation?
It depends on the time of the game. If I have an afternoon match, I always make sure that I go for a walk in the morning just so that I can get my body moving. Then I will have a late breakfast or an early lunch.
Driving into the game, I like to listen to my playlist through my car and always making sure I am drinking plenty of water.
If it is a night game, I like to keep busy during the day so that I don’t get too worked up about my game. It helps that VNL is played on Wednesday nights, as I am at work during the day, so that’s a great distraction for me. I am always making sure that I am eating well, drinking plenty of water and moving my body during the day.
For pre-game, I am at the stadium and I always like to eat a banana and chat a little bit with the other umpires. Then I put my headphones to block out what is going on around me to make sure that I am focusing on the game ahead. I then complete my warm up before I head out to the court.
How did you feel stepping out on to the court for the first time?
To be honest, it didn’t feel real to begin with.
I think having the opportunity to reserve was a massive help. It allowed me to understand how things work on game day and the procedures which need to be followed. There is a lot more that goes on that umpires are required to do, rather than just going out there with the whistle and making decisions. There is a lot of stuff that goes on behind the scenes, which most people don’t realise.
Because I was aware of the different roles and responsibilities that are carried out on game day, it allowed me to block out the noise and the atmosphere surrounding the game to help me focus on the job that I needed to do.
Of course, I was beyond excited to be given the opportunity to take this next step in my umpiring career. I was also really nervous as well, but I was ready to get out there and get the job done.
Do you have any advice for aspiring netball umpires out there?
One of the main things that I have taken away from my umpiring career is that it is important that you take as many opportunities as you can, but make sure that you don’t burn yourself out.
There was a time where I was doing heaps of umpiring and wasn’t necessarily enjoying it. It got to a point where I was exhausted and I felt like I was burning out, on top of studying and working as well. I needed to take a step back and assess how much I was doing and what I was getting out of it. I think having that time to assess the situation was really important. It allowed me to regain my focus and continue to enjoy what I was doing, instead of umpiring for the sake of it.
That then leads into making sure that you are going out there, having fun and enjoying yourself. If you’re not enjoying yourself while you’re out there doing it, I don’t really see the point of umpiring. Making connections with other people; players, coaches, fellow umpire coaches, help make the experience all the more enjoyable.
To begin or continue your umpiring career in the Netball Victoria pathway, visit: https://vic.netball.com.au/umpiring
