Former names | Genea Netball Centre |
---|---|
Location | 2 Olympic Boulevard Sydney Olympic Park New South Wales [1] [2] |
Owner | Netball New South Wales |
Capacity | 860 |
Surface | Timber sprung floor courts |
Construction | |
Broke ground | 2013 |
Opened | 2014 |
Construction cost | $35m |
Architect | Scott Carver Architects |
Tenants | |
New South Wales Swifts Giants Netball Giants Netball Academy Netball NSW Premier League NNSW Waratahs Canberra Giants |
Netball Central is an Australian netball venue located in Sydney Olympic Park, New South Wales. Between 2016 and 2018, due to a naming rights arrangement, it was known as the Genea Netball Centre. The venue is owned by Netball New South Wales. It serves as their headquarters and as the main training base for New South Wales Swifts and Giants Netball. It was a host venue for the 2015 Netball World Cup and the 2018 Invictus Games. As well as netball, Netball Central regularly hosts martial arts, volleyball, table tennis, badminton and basketball tournaments and competitions.
In February 2011, Netball New South Wales announced their plans to build a new Netball Centre of Excellence in Sydney Olympic Park. Construction work began on the projection in 2013, with the "turning of the sod" taking place on Sunday, 17 February 2013. The architects were Scott Carver Architects and the builders were Probuild Constructions, while the Arup Group acted as consultants. Netball Central was the first sports facility to be built at the park since the 2000 Summer Olympics. Located on Olympic Boulevard, it was built on land in front of the State Sports Centre. One of its most distinctive features is a gable-roofed portal frame of laminated veneer lumber. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] The finished project cost $35m and was funded by the Australian Government, the Government of New South Wales, the Sydney Olympic Park Authority and Netball New South Wales. [7] [8] [13] [14]
On Monday, 1 December 2014, Netball New South Wales moved into Netball Central. [7] [8] It was officially opened on 6 February 2015 with a ceremony attended by Wendy Archer, the Netball NSW President, Carolyn Campbell, the Netball NSW CEO, Stuart Ayres, a Government of New South Wales minister and Craig Laundy, the Member of Parliament for Reid. It was originally due to be officially opened in December 2014 but was the ceremony was cancelled due to the Lindt Cafe siege. [13] [14]
During its first year open, Netball Central hosted three major netball tournaments. In February 2015 New South Wales Swifts hosted the 2015 ANZ Championship Official Pre-Season Summer Shootout. The tournament featured all ten ANZ Championship teams. This was the first major netball tournament to be held at the venue. In April 2015, Netball Central hosted the under-17 and under-19 Australian National Netball Championships tournaments. New South Wales finished as under-19 champions and as under-17 runners-up. In August 2015 Netball Central was a host venue for the 2015 Netball World Cup. It was the official training venue for all sixteen participating teams. It also hosted pool matches, play-offs and placing games. [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]
Netball Central serves as the headquarters for Netball New South Wales and as the main training base for New South Wales Swifts and Giants Netball. [17] [19] [20] [21] [22]
Between 2015 and 2019, Netball Central regularly hosted Australian Netball League matches. Both NNSW Waratahs and Canberra Giants played home matches at the venue. The venue also hosted the 2016 ANL Final Series. In the grand final Waratahs lost 53–46 to Victorian Fury. [14] [23] [24] [25]
Since 2016, Netball Central has been the host venue for the Netball NSW Premier League. It also hosts numerous other netball competitions organised by Netball New South Wales, including the Dooleys Metro League. [26] [24] [27] [28] [29] [30]
In 2016, Sydney Warriors and Sydney Amazons announced that they would play their home matches for the 2016 Australian Volleyball League and Australian Women's Volleyball League seasons at Netball Central. [31]
Netball Central features six timber sprung courts, including a show court which seats 860. [17] [19] [32]
Netball Central regularly hosts martial arts, volleyball, table tennis, basketball tournaments. [17] [19] [27] [29] [30]
Date | Event | |
---|---|---|
February 2015 | 2015 ANZ Championship Official Pre-Season Summer Shootout [13] [14] [15] [16] | Pre-season netball tournament featuring the ten ANZ Championship teams. |
April 2015 | 2015 Australian National Netball Championships [14] | Under-17 and Under-19 tournaments. |
August 2015 | 2015 Netball World Cup [14] [17] [18] | Training venue for all 16 participating teams. Hosted pool matches, play-off and placing games. Hosted 16 matches. |
June 2016 | 2016 Australian Netball League Finals Series [23] [24] | Victorian Fury defeated NNSW Waratahs 53–46 in the grand final. |
November 2016 | 2016 Sydney International [24] | Badminton tournament |
March 2018 | Pre-Season Tournament [28] | Tournament featuring Swifts, Giants, West Coast Fever and England played before 2018 Suncorp Super Netball season |
May 2018 | 2018 Sydney International [28] | Badminton tournament |
August 2018 | 2018 IWRF World Championship [28] | Wheelchair rugby tournament |
October 2018 | 2018 Invictus Games [28] [17] [33] | Sitting volleyball pool matches, Powerlifting heats and finals |
September 2022 | 2022 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup [34] | Training venue |
Years | |
---|---|
Genea [24] [27] [28] [35] | 2016–2018 |
Catherine Anne Cox is a former Australia netball international and current netball commentator. Between 1997 and 2013, she made 108 senior appearances for Australia. She was a prominent member of the Australia teams that won gold medals at the 2002 Commonwealth Games and the 2007 and 2011 World Netball Championships. She was also a member of the Australia teams that won silver medals at the 2003 World Netball Championships and the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games. Cox captained Australia on seven occasions, including when they won the 2011 Constellation Cup.
New South Wales Swifts are an Australian netball team based in Sydney, New South Wales. Since 2017 they have represented Netball New South Wales in Suncorp Super Netball. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. The team was formed in 2007 when Netball New South Wales merged its two former Commonwealth Bank Trophy league teams, Sydney Swifts and Hunter Jaegers. In 2008, Swifts were the inaugural ANZ Championship winners. Swifts were also grand finalists in 2015 and 2016. They won their second and third premierships in 2019 and 2021.
Rebecca Bulley, also known as Rebecca Strachan, is a former Australia netball international. Between 2008 and 2015 she made 42 senior appearances for Australia. Bulley was a member of the Australia teams that won the gold medal at the 2015 Netball World Cup and the silver medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Bulley also won three ANZ Championship titles with three different teams – the 2008 New South Wales Swifts, the 2013 Adelaide Thunderbirds and the 2015 Queensland Firebirds. She began her senior club career with Melbourne Kestrels during the Commonwealth Bank Trophy era and finished it playing for Giants Netball in Suncorp Super Netball.
Emma Koster is a former Australian netball player. Between 2003 and 2007, Koster played for Hunter Jaegers and AIS Canberra Darters in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy league. She later played for New South Wales Swifts in the ANZ Championship during the 2008 and 2009 seasons. She was a member of the Swifts team that won inaugural 2008 ANZ Championship. She also represented Australia at under-21 level.
Vanessa Ware is a former Australian netball player. Between 2003 and 2007 she played for Sydney Swifts in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy league. She was a member of the Sydney Swifts teams that won premierships in 2004, 2006, 2007. Between 2008 and 2013 she played for New South Wales Swifts in the ANZ Championship. She was a member of the Swifts team that won the 2008 ANZ Championship. She also represented Australia at under-19, under-21 and Fast5 levels.
Amorette Wild, also known as Amy Wild, is a former Australian netball player. Wild played for both New South Wales Swifts and Queensland Firebirds during the ANZ Championship era. She was a member of the Firebirds team that won the 2015 ANZ Championship. She also represented Australia at under-19, under-21 and Fast5 levels.
The 2011 New South Wales Swifts season saw New South Wales Swifts compete in the 2011 ANZ Championship. During the regular season, Swifts finished in third place. They qualified for the play offs but subsequently lost to Northern Mystics in the minor semi-final, finishing the season in 4th place. After fifteen seasons as Sydney Swifts/New South Wales Swifts head coach, this was the last season Julie Fitzgerald served as head coach. Following a controversial "internal review", Fitzgerald was replaced as head coach by Lisa Beehag. The review was conducted during the 2011 season. Catherine Cox and Liz Ellis publicly criticized Netball New South Wales for distracting players with the review and even alleged that it was responsible for Swifts losing the 2011 minor semi-final.
Courtney Tairi is a former New Zealand netball international. She also represented Australia at under-21 level. She was a member of the Australia team that won the 2009 World Youth Netball Championships. During the ANZ Championship era, Tairi played for New South Wales Swifts, Southern Steel and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic. She finished her netball playing career with Northern Stars in the 2017 ANZ Premiership. Since retiring as a netball player, Tairi has worked a broadcaster, presenter and commentator for Sky Sport.
The 2012 New South Wales Swifts season saw New South Wales Swifts compete in the 2012 ANZ Championship. They were coached by Lisa Beehag, a former Australia international. During the 2011 season, Beehag had served as head coach of NNSW Blues in the Australian Netball League. During the regular season, Swifts finished in fifth place and failed to qualify for the play offs. They narrowly missed out on the play offs after a 50–49 defeat to Northern Mystics in their final regular season match.
Abbey McCulloch is a former Australian netball player. Between 2014 and 2018, McCulloch played for New South Wales Swifts. She captained Swifts during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. She previously played for NNSW Waratahs and Queensland Firebirds.
The 2015 ANZ Championship season was the eighth season of the ANZ Championship. The season began on 28 February and concluded on 21 June. The 2015 season saw the introduction of several major format changes and initiatives, including a Conference system, a six-team Finals Series, drawn games and a new Ranfurly Shield-style competition, the Challenge Trophy. With a team coached by Roselee Jencke, captained by Laura Geitz and featuring Romelda Aiken, Clare McMeniman and Kim Ravaillion, Queensland Firebirds won the Australian Conference, the Challenge Trophy, the minor premiership and the overall championship. Firebirds narrowly defeated New South Wales Swifts in both the Australian Conference final and the Grand Final on their way to effectively winning four titles.
The 2016 ANZ Championship season was the ninth and last season of the ANZ Championship. The season began on 1 April 2016 and concluded on 4 July 2016. Southern Steel were minor premiers. However they subsequently lost the New Zealand Conference Final to Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic and were defeated in the semi-finals by Queensland Firebirds. With a team coached by Roselee Jencke, captained by Laura Geitz and featuring Romelda Aiken, Clare McMeniman and Kim Ravaillion, Firebirds won the Australian Conference, the Challenge Trophy and the overall championship. Firebirds became the first and only team to retain the title. In a repeat of 2015, Firebirds defeated New South Wales Swifts in both the Australian Conference Final and the Grand Final.
Giants Netball are an Australian netball team based in Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales. Since 2017 they have played in Suncorp Super Netball. The team was formed in 2016 as a joint venture between Netball New South Wales and Greater Western Sydney Giants. Giants have played in two grand finals and have won two minor premierships.
Netball New South Wales Waratahs is an Australian netball team that represents Netball New South Wales in the Australian Netball League. In 2008 they were founder members of the ANL. They were ANL champions in 2011 and have been grand finalists on a further five occasions, making them the second most successful team in the ANL after Victorian Fury. Waratahs are effectively the reserve team of New South Wales Swifts.
The 2015 New South Wales Swifts season saw New South Wales Swifts compete in the 2015 ANZ Championship. Swifts finished the regular season in second place in the Australian Conference. In the play-offs, they defeated West Coast Fever and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic but twice lost narrowly to Queensland Firebirds in both the Australian Conference final and the Grand Final. It was Swifts' first appearance in the title decider since their successful 2008 campaign.
The 2016 New South Wales Swifts season saw New South Wales Swifts compete in the 2016 ANZ Championship. Swifts finished the regular season in second place in the Australian Conference. In the play-offs, they defeated Melbourne Vixens and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic but lost twice to Queensland Firebirds, including 69–67 in the grand final.
Netball New South Wales is the governing body for netball in New South Wales. It is affiliated to Netball Australia. It is responsible for organizing and managing two elite level teams, New South Wales Swifts and Giants Netball, who compete in Suncorp Super Netball. It is also responsible for organizing and managing the Netball NSW Premier League as well as numerous other leagues and competitions for junior and youth teams. Its headquarters are based at Netball Central, Sydney Olympic Park.
The 2015 Queensland Firebirds season saw the Queensland Firebirds netball team compete in the 2015 ANZ Championship. With a team coached by Roselee Jencke, captained by Laura Geitz and featuring Romelda Aiken, Clare McMeniman and Kim Ravaillion, Firebirds won the Australian Conference, the Challenge Trophy, the minor premiership and the overall championship. Firebirds narrowly defeated New South Wales Swifts in both the Australian Conference final and the Grand Final on their way to effectively winning four titles.
Julie Fitzgerald is a veteran Australian netball coach. Between 1997 and 2007, Fitzgerald served as head coach of Sydney Swifts in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy league. She guided Swifts to premierships in 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2007. Between 2008 and 2011, she served as head coach of New South Wales Swifts in the ANZ Championship. In 2008, she guided Swifts to the inaugural ANZ Championship title. Between 2014 and 2016, she guided Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic to the Finals Series every year in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017, Fitzgerald has served as head coach of Giants Netball in Suncorp Super Netball, guiding them to two grand finals and two minor championships. In 2020, Fitzgerald was made a Member of the Order of Australia.
The 2009 New South Wales Swifts season saw New South Wales Swifts play in the 2009 ANZ Championship. With a team coached by Julie Fitzgerald and captained by Catherine Cox, Swifts won only 2 of their 13 matches during the regular season and finished ninth.