Work, play and parent: Kayla Steindl’s busy life

Written by Julia Montesano

Usually on Mother’s Day, Mums around the country get to put their feet up for the day and let their kids and husbands/ partners do all the spoiling.

But for Joondalup Wolves star Kayla Steindl, it’s just another busy day in her ever-evolving schedule as a mum, wife and baller.

With her and her husband, Clint’s schedules crossing over on a weekly basis, looking after her one-year-old son Noah has become a challenge.

“Usually on Monday, Noah’s at daycare and I’m at school,” Steindl explains.

“I get home on Tuesday afternoon and it’s a mad rush to get the dog to the dog park.

“Then we have to start the dinner routine and clean up and then get out the door for training.

“There’s normally a day in there that Clint gets off so we keep Noah home with him.

“Thursday nights are normally the same thing- a mad rush to get Noah fed and bathed after school before I have to leave at six.

“The weekends are always tough with games.

“Sometimes we’ve got to get a babysitter around when Clint is away.

“Every week is different!”

This has especially proved true in the past two COVID-19-ridden years.

While playing for the Perth Lynx in the 2020 WNBL season, Steindl took Noah into the team’s Mackay ‘hub’, meaning her husband wasn’t able to see their son for six weeks.

Then in 2021, Noah and Kayla were kept away from Clint, after his Wildcats spent just under a month in Melbourne competing in, and winning, the NBL Cup.

Without their supportive family, Kayla says she and Clint wouldn’t be able to do what they do on such a full-on basis.

This especially proved true in the Lynx’s Mackay WNBL hub, as the Steindls had family who could look after Noah while Kayla was tearing it up on the court.

Even though a hotel and a basketball court may not be the best places to house a 10-month-old baby, Kayla says the fun of it all outweighed the challenges.

“If we had ‘hubbed’ anywhere else in the country, we probably wouldn’t have been able to bring Noah,” she says.

“We have family in Mackay, so it was a no-brainer when Perth said that’s where we were going at first.

“It was so good to see our family.

“We hadn’t seen our family since COVID-19 happened.

“In hindsight, it was actually really easy having Noah there, as it could’ve been a lot more difficult with him.

“He just adapted to hotel living and seeing family who he’d never seen before every day.

“It was really great for Noah, but I know Clint sure missed us a lot.

“It was quite a long time to be apart from each other but thank god for technology and FaceTime.”

During the NBL Cup, it was Clint who was away from home on the other end of the FaceTime call.

With Kayla’s relief teaching work picking up rapidly, she says juggling her work, play and parenting during this tournament was more difficult.

But with Clint’s support, she was able to stay on track physically and mentally during the tough time.

“Having a lot of work during that time made the days go quickly, which is what you want sometimes when you’ve got no help,” she says.

“In a normal season, the NBL would be finished, so Clint would look after Noah during my training nights, and I would be going into my NBL1 season.

“But with the overlapping seasons, it’s proving to be a bit difficult because I have to get someone to watch Noah on training nights.

“It’s a juggling act but we figure it out.

“We’re so lucky we’ve got such helpful family and friends over here, so they enable us to do what we do.”

In terms of finally hitting the court for NBL1 West, Steindl is hoping she can make her mark as soon as this weekend in the NBL1’s Play4BCNA Round for the Joondalup Wolves.

It will be a fitting 2021 Wolves debut for Steindl, with the round being held in conjunction with Mother’s Day weekend to recognise all the amazing mums involved in the league, as well as pay tribute to those who fighting or who have lost their fight to breast cancer.

Although training in masks is “interesting” preparation, the 187cm big is just excited to bring her experience onto the court for all the players around her.

Having played with three WNBL teams in the Adelaide Lightning, Townsville Fire and Perth Lynx and being involved in two QBL championships with the Mackay Meteorettes, Steindl is no stranger to success.

She hopes to prolong this success for as long as her body and schedule will allow it but knows this will be easier thanks to her husband’s constant support.

“Basketball pretty much rules our year, all year round,” she says.

“Thankfully, my husband is very supportive of me and my career as I am of his.

“He wants me to continue playing basketball for as long as I can.”