Hockey ACT goalkeeper of the year Peta Sutherland spends her weekend swatting away shots in front of goals as she chases an ANU drought-breaking premiership.
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But her real passion lies beneath the pads and helmet as she pursues her life ambition of working in animal conservation and helping endangered lions.
That's why the Australian indoor representative put her hockey career on hold last year to work for the African Lion and Environment Research Trust in Zambia.
Her day job at the National Zoo and Aquarium effectively makes her a goalkeeper by day and zookeeper by night.
She missed most of ANU's season last year to work at the Mosi oa Tunya National Park, a World Heritage site, to work with an organisation that focuses on increasing the number of African lions.
"I hope to work directly with the animals in the future," said Sutherland, who has a lion tattoo on her arm.
"I would like to be a keeper and that's on the cards. But my main focus is on the conservation side of things ... policies about protecting animals and having an end goal.
"Working in Africa is something that ultimately I'd love to do. I became fascinated with the project with the African lions and I got to work as an intern in an animal management role.
"I was in charge of making sure they were healthy, keeping an eye on them and they're working towards building up the wild numbers of African lions."
Sutherland was named as the Hockey ACT women's goalkeeper of the year on Tuesday night and was in the Australian indoor squad for the World Cup last year. However, she missed most of ANU's 2015 campaign while she was in Zambia.
Her mid-year excursion forced her to watch from the sideline as ANU finished third on the ladder but failed in its premiership bid.
The club hasn't won a women's first-grade premiership since 1999 but Sutherland, a 10-year ANU veteran, hopes they can end the drought when they play against St Patrick's.
The 26-year-old dislocated her kneecap at the end of last year and feared surgery in March would end her hopes of joining ANU's premiership push.
"Somehow I recovered to be back half-way through the season and I'm surprised with how fast it came good. My knee is feeling better than it ever has," Sutherland said.
"We beat Tuggeranong last week [2-0] and that has given us the belief.
"We were adding things up the other day and we've been in about five or six grand finals, but we've lost all of them.
"In my first year in 2006 we made the grand final and we've done it another four or five times.
"The closest we came was in 2012 when the played Old Canberrans, we got to the end of extra time and they scored. It was heart-breaking. Hopefully this is the year."
HOCKEY ACT GRAND FINALS
Saturday: Women's - ANU v St Patrick's at 4.45pm. Men's - Goulburn v Central at 6.30pm. All Hockey ACT grand finals at National Hockey Centre, Lyneham, from 8.45am to 7.15pm.
