Or: Why I put my PhD on hold for 6 months
You might not have noticed from the extremely professional façade I portray on here, but in the last couple of years I’ve picked up the extremely fun and rewarding hobby of handball. It has become a really large part of my life, so much so that I interrupted my PhD from July through December this year because of it. Let me show you why.
Club champs
In July I competed for the UQ Handball Club at the Australia and Oceania Club Championships for the second time. And unlike last year, where I sat on the bench and eagerly absorbed as much as I could from the side-lines, another year of training (and the fortune of being the only left-hander on the team) earned me the responsibility of serious playtime. Five tough games later, we managed to pull off something the club had been working towards for the better part of a decade – toppling Sydney Uni, the reigning champions since 2014, and winning the final against St. Kilda.
This also earned us the right to compete at the 2023 IHF Super Globe, the annual handball club world championships held in November. Celebration soon turned to anticipation as we realised the hard work and sacrifice we would have to put in to mix it with some of the best professional clubs in the world.
Prep
With just over three months to prepare, we had to get started straight away. Four on-court trainings, three gym sessions and three running sessions each week is a lot to ask of people who otherwise still have full-time jobs and families. To me, I could see no way to balance this with tutoring and PhD work. I had committed to a lot of tutoring and semester had already started, so the PhD had to go. I made the arrangements to pause the PhD, and committed to this potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I’m very grateful to my supervisors and course co-ordinators for being flexible, supporting and understanding.
The preparation was tough, but by the end of the program I felt stronger, fitter and a lot better at handball. Of course, I learned a lot about myself and what motivates me to work hard, so it was a worthwhile experience for that reason alone.
The competition
It was always going to be tough playing against some of the best players in the world, especially when we hadn’t played on a stage like this before. There were a lot of firsts: first time playing in front of thousands of spectators, all supporting the other team; first time getting a police escort; first time playing against professionals; first time losing by 40+ goals. But you learn a lot about how you can improve in these situations, so we’re excited to work hard to do it all again next year. We set ourselves a benchmark, and showed that an Australian-based team can perform on the world stage.
What I learned
Individually, I know I have a lot to work on over the next twelve months to help the team get back to this position next year, and then give a better showing of myself if we get there. I learned to be resilient in times of adversity, and I learned what matters to me and how to better manage my time next year so I can manage my PhD as well as handball. (Farewell tutoring!) Finally, I learned to embrace opportunities when they arise, and enjoy every moment.
Jack Neubecker 
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