It has been 36 years since she hung up the bib, but there is something about the sport that keeps luring her back.
Known as one of the most tenacious players of her playing days, Gibbs put the previously overlooked position of wing defence on a pedestal through her physicality, constant pressure and game knowledge, making it hard for any wing attack to get past her.
The Canterbury midcourter demanded a lot of herself, and those around her, helping her on her way to an illustrious 10-year international career.
The 61-cap Silver Fern played in three Netball World Cups, sharing the 1979 title with Trinidad and Tobago and Australia, and falling short against Australia four years later.
That 1983 heartache turned to triumph in 1987, when the Silver Ferns - sometimes referred to as the greatest team of all time - won the world title, beating all opponents by more than 10 goals, under captain Gibbs.
Gibbs was in Dunedin last weekend, reuniting with her former team-mates, coach Lois Muir, umpire Dawn Jones and physio Marg Harp, to mark their place in netball history.
They were without their fabulous goal attack, the late Margaret Forsyth, and manager, the late Monica Leggat.
It was a "surreal" weekend for Silver Fern No 64 catching up with them all.
"Mainly because I don’t know where the years have gone," Gibbs said.
"To have a full turn-out, minus sadly our lost members, it’s been surreal. Inside we don’t change at all."
She was among a cohort of players hurting from their 1983 loss, and alongside some fresh faces, there was a sense of unity among the 1987 team that left a legacy.
"It was united and, I guess, aligned in what we were wanting to achieve. It didn’t have to be a big song and dance about it. We were just focused and we were strongly led by Lois, as you can imagine."
Muir, one of New Zealand’s most successful coaches with 91 wins, 10 losses and six draws at the helm of the Silver Ferns, appreciated both the player, and the person, helping her squad flourish when they needed it most.
"What I had been privileged to experience [was] her coaching over quite a number of years," Gibbs said.
"So I had seen a growth as a coach which at the time, because I was playing, I hadn’t appreciated, but when I took on coaching ... just a huge admiration for that in her. I think it was a huge contributor to our success."
Asked if Muir’s impact was reflected is her own coaching, Gibbs said "absolutely, yes".
"What would Lois have done? Even sometimes ... some of her sayings I could hear myself saying.
"It’s funny because you often ... think of your parents being reflective in [you] and it sort of has a similar, but different [effect]."
She became the Silver Ferns’ sixth coach in 1994, winning bronze at the 1995 World Cup - captained by former team-mate Sandra Edge - and stepping down from international duties in 1997.
But she could not be kept away for long, returning as assistant coach to Ruth Aitken during a highly successful tenure, winning the World Cup in 2003 and Commonwealth Games in 2006.
She returned to her Canterbury roots, coaching the Mainland Tactix from 2012 to 2014, and working as Netball Mainland high performance manager, before heading across the ditch as general manager of community for Netball Queensland.
Netball did not vary much between the two countries: Australia had associations, rather than New Zealand’s centres, and were run by devoted volunteers, but netball had a "higher profile" in New Zealand.
"It’s starting to change a little bit, but male sports certainly ruled the roost.
"We’ve had a huge head start in that space - and long may it continue."
After spending five years in Queensland, Gibbs returned home, taking up a role as centre manager for Nelson Netball in 2021, before becoming Netball New Zealand’s community coaching manager in 2022.
She sits on the world netball advisory panel for coaching, travelling to Cape Town for a conference earlier this month and watching some early games of the Netball World Cup live.
As a Silver Ferns selector, Gibbs kept a watchful eye on the Ferns’ progress before coming to watch from afar as they placed fourth.
"What it highlighted for me is it is blimming hard to win a World Cup.
"What is fabulous for world netball is we’ve got more than just Australia and New Zealand.
"People go, ‘Why bother, because it’s only New Zealand and Australia?’ Well, you can’t say that now.
"African nations are hungry for learning about the game. Uganda, I think, and Malawi previously, showed that they’ve got capability.
"[They’re] playing entertaining netball and having been more aware of Malawi’s progress, their game’s just matured - it really stood out to me."
While it was not the campaign the Silver Ferns wanted, the future still looked bright as some rich young talent came through.
"You can’t ever shortcut that experience and it probably historically proves the value of players with good experience.
"We can’t avoid people coming in that are a bit younger than others. Sometimes the cycles work in your favour and sometimes it doesn’t."
Netball brought a lot to Gibbs’ life, and the impact she had on the game had been immense.
But her influence would not have been possible without her beloved coach.
"I think that’s a legacy of Lois’s, too. So many of [the 1987 team] have stayed in the game for a length of time.
"I’ve learnt too as a a coach, as much as the wins and the big cups and stuff is ultimately what you’re striving for, for me, the fact that you’ve influenced people to stay in the game is in some ways stronger, more powerful."
