Adelaide Thunderbirds are an Australian netball team based in Adelaide, South Australia. Since 2017 they have played in Suncorp Super Netball. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship and between 1997 and 2007, they played in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy league. Thunderbirds have won four premierships. They won their first two premierships in 1998 and 1999 during the Commonwealth Bank Trophy era and their third and fourth in 2010 and 2013 during ANZ Championship era. Historically, Thunderbirds are one of Australia's most successful netball teams. Between 1997 and 2010 they finished in the top three of every regular season.
Netball SA Stadium is an Australia netball stadium based in Mile End South, Adelaide. Due to sponsorship and naming rights arrangements, it has also been known as ETSA Park and Priceline Stadium. The stadium is owned by the Government of South Australia who in turn lease it to Netball South Australia. It is the main home venue for Adelaide Thunderbirds of Suncorp Super Netball and Southern Force of the Australian Netball League. It is also the main host venue for the Netball South Australia Premier League. It also serves as the headquarters for Netball South Australia.
Natalie von Bertouch, also known as Natalie Bode, is a former Australia netball international. Between 2004 and 2012 she made 76 senior appearances for Australia. Bertouch was a member of the Australia teams that won the gold medals at the 2007 and 2011 World Netball Championships. She captained Australia at the latter tournament. She was also a member of the Australia teams that won the silver medals at the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games. At club level, Bertouch captained Adelaide Thunderbirds to two ANZ Championship titles in 2010 and 2013. Her older sister, Laura von Bertouch is also a former netball player. The two sisters were team mates with both Thunderbirds and Australia.
The ANZ Championship, also known as the Trans-Tasman Netball League, is a former netball league featuring teams from both Australia and New Zealand. Between 2008 and 2016, it was the top-level league in both countries. The competition was owned and administered by Trans-Tasman Netball League Ltd (TTNL), a joint venture between Netball Australia and Netball New Zealand. It was effectively a merger of Australia's Commonwealth Bank Trophy and New Zealand's National Bank Cup. Its main sponsor was the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group.
Netball South Australia is the governing body for netball in South Australia. It is affiliated to Netball Australia. It is responsible for organizing and managing the Netball South Australia Premier League as well as numerous other leagues and competitions for junior and youth teams. It is also responsible for organizing and managing two elite level representatives teams, Adelaide Thunderbirds, who compete in the Suncorp Super Netball, and Southern Force who compete in the Australian Netball League. Its headquarters are based at Netball SA Stadium.
Georgia Beaton is an Australian netball player who has played for Adelaide Thunderbirds in the ANZ Championship, for Southern Force in the Australian Netball League, for Team Northumbria in the Netball Superleague and for Contax in the Netball South Australia Premier League. She was a member of the Thunderbirds team that won the 2010 ANZ Championship and of the Southern Force team that won the 2012 ANL title.
Melissa Rowland is a former Australian netball player. In 2007 Rowland was included in the Melbourne Phoenix Commonwealth Bank Trophy squad. She was also a member of the Adelaide Thunderbirds senior team during the 2008 and 2012 ANZ Championship seasons. Rowland was a member of both the Contax team that won the 2008 South Australia state league title and of the Southern Force team that won the 2012 Australian Netball League.
The 2012 Adelaide Thunderbirds season saw Adelaide Thunderbirds compete in the 2012 ANZ Championship. After winning nine games doing the regular season, Thunderbirds finished fourth and qualified for the play-offs. However they subsequently lost the minor semi-final 49–48 to the eventual overall champions, Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic.
Fiona Themann, also known as Fiona Fowler, is a Scotland netball international. She represented Scotland at the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games and at the 2015 Netball World Cup. At club level, she has played for Melbourne Phoenix in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy, Melbourne University Lightning in the Victorian Netball League, Victorian Fury in the Australian Netball League and for Adelaide Thunderbirds in Suncorp Super Netball. She captained Fury when they won ANL premierships in 2015 and 2016. In 2016 she helped three different teams win league titles. In addition to captaining Fury, she also helped Lightning win the VNL Championship and Newbridge win the LVFNL premiership.
The Australian Netball Championships, formerly the Australian Netball League, is an Australian netball competition. Since 2008 it has served as a second level competition, initially below the ANZ Championship and later below Suncorp Super Netball. It is organised by Netball Australia. The teams in the competition are effectively the reserve teams of Suncorp Super Netball teams and/or the representative teams of state netball leagues, such as the South Australia state netball league, the Victorian Netball League and the West Australian Netball League. Victorian Fury were the inaugural ANL champions. Fury are also the competition's most successful team, having won eight premierships. The 2020 ANL season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the competition was subsequently re-branded as the Australian Netball Championships.
Samantha Poolman, also known as Sam Poolman, is a former Australian netball player. Between 2010 and 2015, Poolman played for NNSW Blues, NNSW Waratahs and Southern Force in the Australian Netball League. Between 2013 and 2016, she played for Adelaide Thunderbirds in the ANZ Championship. She was a member of the Thunderbirds team that won the 2013 ANZ Championship. Between 2017 and 2021, Poolman has played for Giants in Suncorp Super Netball.
Maddy Proud, also known as Madeleine Proud, is an Australian netball player. Between 2011 and 2016, Proud played for Adelaide Thunderbirds in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017, she has played for New South Wales Swifts in Suncorp Super Netball. She captained the Swifts team that won the 2019 Suncorp Super Netball title. She has also represented Australia at under-21 and Fast5 level.
Victorian Fury are an Australian netball team that represents Netball Victoria in the Australian Netball League. In 2008 they were both founding members and the inaugural champions of the league. They retained the title in 2009 and completed a three in row in 2010. They then won it four times in a row between 2013 and 2016. In 2019 they won their eighth ANL title. They are the most successful team in the ANL. Fury are effectively the representative team of the Victorian Netball League and the reserve team of Melbourne Vixens.
Territory Storm, also referred to as Northern Territory Storm or NT Storm, is an Australian netball team that represented Netball Northern Territory in the Australian Netball League. Territory Storm played in the ANL between 2008 and 2019. Between 2017 and 2019 they formed a partnership with Sunshine Coast Lightning and were effectively Lightning's reserve team.
Western Sting are an Australian netball team that represents Netball Western Australia in the Australian Netball League. They were ANL champions in 2017. Western Sting are effectively the representative team of the West Australian Netball League and the reserve team of West Coast Fever.
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.
Contax Netball Club are an Australian netball team based in Adelaide, South Australia. Their senior team currently plays in the Netball South Australia Premier League. Between 1989 and 1996, Contax represented Netball South Australia in the Esso/Mobil Superleague. They were premiers in 1994. They were originally known as Contax Basketball Club, when netball was known as women's basketball. During the Esso/Mobil Superleague era, they were also referred to as Adelaide Contax. Between 1995 and 2012, when the club was sponsored by ETSA, and then ETSA Utilities, they were known as ETSA Contax.
Garville Netball Club is an Australian netball team based in Woodville, Adelaide, South Australia. Their senior team currently plays in the Netball South Australia Premier League. During the 1990s they played at a national level, representing Netball South Australia in the Mobil Superleague. During the Mobil Superleague era, they were also referred to as Adelaide Garville. In 1993 they were Mobil Superleague premiers.
Netball New South Wales Blues are a former Australian netball team. Between 2008 and 2014, they represented Netball New South Wales in the Australian Netball League. In 2008 they were founder members of the ANL. Together with Netball New South Wales Waratahs they were one of two teams to represent Netball New South Wales in the ANL. Blues were effectively a New South Wales Swifts third team.
The 2010 Adelaide Thunderbirds season saw Adelaide Thunderbirds compete in the 2010 ANZ Championship. After winning nine games, Thunderbirds finished second, behind New South Wales Swifts, during the regular season. However, after defeating Swifts in the major semi-final, Thunderbirds defeated Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic 52–42 in the grand final to win their third premiership. The 2010 season was the last season that Thunderbirds played in black, white, teal and silver, the colours of their sponsors, Port Adelaide Football Club. Ahead of the 2011 season, Thunderbirds announced they were changing their team colours to pink.
