Tom Heptinstall emphasizes the importance of consistency as he shares his experiences upon returning to WA from his latest pro season. He played for the Bengaluru Torpedoes under the mentorship of USA Volleyball legend David Lee in Chennai, India. You can find out more about Tom’s volleyball journey, his recent 87-point professional season, and the advice he has for aspiring young players below.
Growing up in WA I was exposed to volleyball at a very young age, and I know a lot of other volleyballers were the same. There are so many ways to get started playing volleyball here such as indoor beach, beach volleyball junior programs and also Indoor volleyball through school or clubs. For me, it was indoor beach which is one of the best ways to start playing volleyball in my opinion.
I’ve been playing professional volleyball since I was 19 and I recently just played with the Australian team in the VNL. Having these experiences under my belt played a big role in my selection for the Torpedoes team as they heavily favour players with professional and national team experience. David Lee was a big part of the reason I was selected as this is something he was looking for in his selection. David was an amazing coach as he brought his 20+ years of volleyball knowledge to the team and showed us all things we never would have thought of ourselves. He was supportive but also pushed us when we needed it.
Photo Credit @ Bengaluru Torpedoes
What I enjoyed most about India was the passion and the community that they created within the team and the league. From the get-go, I could see that the club wanted to win and did whatever they could so that the athletes could perform physically and mentally at their best. Before I went to India, they stated that the team is like a family and that is exactly what it felt like being there.
Like anything in this world, there are challenges, and I certainly had my fair share in India. Firstly, the culture there is very different to Australia in terms of communication and lifestyle and of course, the food is something to get used to. I quickly settled in and the guys made sure to help me in any way they could. The other challenge was more related to the actual volleyball where certain high-pressure games didn’t go our way and we had to deal with those losses knowing that the next day was another high-pressure game. This is not only tough on the mind but on the body and bouncing back from these sorts of games is tough.
Photo Credit @ Bengaluru Torpedoes
If any athletes were looking to do something similar this would be my advice to you. Consistency is king. I didn’t just get this contract out of nowhere; I started training full-time when I was 16 years old, and I’ve been playing overseas for around 7-8 years now. Nothing drastic must change but just showing up every day and wanting to be better is the only way to succeed at anything. The opportunities will come to you and slowly but surely you will work your way up to whatever level you want to aim for.
Written by Tom Heptinstall