Current season, competition or edition: 2024 Suncorp Super Netball season | |
Sport | Netball |
---|---|
Founded | 2016 |
First season | 2017 |
Owner(s) | Netball Australia |
No. of teams | 8 |
Country | Australia |
Most recent champion(s) | Adelaide Thunderbirds (2nd title) |
Most titles | Adelaide Thunderbirds New South Wales Swifts Sunshine Coast Lightning (2 titles each) |
TV partner(s) | Fox Sports |
Streaming partner(s) | Kayo Sports |
Sponsor(s) | Suncorp Group |
Related competitions | Australian Netball Championships ANZ Championship Commonwealth Bank Trophy |
Official website | supernetball.com.au |
The Super Netball League [1] (known predominantly by its sponsored name Suncorp Super Netball (SSN)) is a professional netball league featuring teams from across Australia. It superseded the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship, which also included teams from New Zealand, as the top-level netball league in Australia in 2017. Since 2019, the league has been governed on behalf of Netball Australia by an independent commission. Its main sponsor is Suncorp Group. Sunshine Coast Lightning were the inaugural Suncorp Super Netball winners.
In May 2016, Netball Australia and Netball New Zealand announced that the ANZ Championship would be discontinued after the 2016 season. In Australia, its replacement league – initially known as simply the National Netball League before an official name was decided upon [2] – included the five former Australian ANZ Championship teams (Adelaide Thunderbirds, Melbourne Vixens, New South Wales Swifts, Queensland Firebirds and West Coast Fever) plus three brand new franchises: Collingwood Magpies, Giants Netball and Sunshine Coast Lightning. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
With a team coached by Noeline Taurua, captained by Geva Mentor and also featuring Caitlin Bassett, Karla Pretorius and Stephanie Wood, Sunshine Coast Lightning finished the 2017 season as inaugural champions after defeating Giants Netball 65–48 in the grand final. In 2018 they retained the title after defeating West Coast Fever 62–59 in the grand final. [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15]
In 2019, Briony Akle guided New South Wales Swifts to their first Suncorp Super Netball title. Despite losing their new captain, Maddy Proud, to injury early in the season, Swifts finished the regular season in second place. In the major semi-final, they lost to Sunshine Coast Lightning. However, they then defeated Melbourne Vixens in the preliminary final. In the grand final they faced Lightning again but this time defeated them 64–47 to emerge as champions. [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]
In 2020, with a team coached again by Simone McKinnis and co-captained by Kate Moloney and Liz Watson, Melbourne Vixens finished the season as both minor premiers and overall champions. [22] [23] In the grand final they defeated West Coast Fever 66–64. [24] [25] [26] In 2021, with a team coached by Briony Akle and co-captained by Maddy Proud and Paige Hadley, New South Wales Swifts won their second Suncorp Super Netball title. In the grand final they defeated Giants Netball 63–59. [27] [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33]
In 2022, head coach Dan Ryan and captain Courtney Bruce led West Coast Fever to their first premiership. In the grand final they defeated Melbourne Vixens 70-59. [34] [35] [36] [37] In May 2023, news reports disclosed that the Collingwood Magpies were in financial distress, and later that month the Collingwood Football Club announced it would withdraw its netball team at the conclusion of the 2023 season. [38] The 2023 premiership was won by the Adelaide Thunderbirds, defeating the Swifts 60–59 after extra time was required in the grand final. It was the Thunderbirds' first national league premiership in a decade, and came off the back of years of lowly finishes in Super Netball. [39]
Following the demise of the Magpies, speculation circled as to who would be awarded the eighth license for the 2024 season and beyond. Submissions for the new license closed on 20 June 2023, with as many as six initial bids being whittled down to two by the closing date, according to media reports. [40] On 21 July 2023, the league announced that the Sports Entertainment Network (SEN), led by chief executive Craig Hutchison, was awarded the license for a team to be based in south-east Melbourne. As part of the licensing agreement, Netball Australia will operate the team for the rest of 2023 before transitioning to SEN for 2024 and beyond. [41] ABC News reported that the SEN bid was preferred by broadcasters Fox Netball over the alternate bid put forward by Netball Victoria, which suggested a regional team 'floating' between Geelong, Bendigo or Ballarat. [40]
Club | Icon | Location | State | Head Coach | Home venue | Est. | SSN seasons | SSN premierships | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First | Total | Total | Most recent | |||||||
Adelaide Thunderbirds | Adelaide | South Australia | Tania Obst | Netball SA Stadium | 1996 | 2017 | 8 | 2 | 2024 | |
Giants Netball | Sydney | New South Wales | Julie Fitzgerald | Ken Rosewall Arena | 2016 | 2017 | 8 | — | — | |
Melbourne Mavericks | Melbourne | Victoria | Tracey Neville | John Cain Arena | 2023 | 2024 | 1 | — | — | |
Melbourne Vixens | Melbourne | Victoria | Simone McKinnis | John Cain Arena | 2007 | 2017 | 8 | 1 | 2020 | |
New South Wales Swifts | Sydney | New South Wales | Briony Akle | Ken Rosewall Arena | 2007 | 2017 | 8 | 2 | 2021 | |
Queensland Firebirds | Brisbane | Queensland | Rebecca Bulley | Nissan Arena | 1996 | 2017 | 8 | — | — | |
Sunshine Coast Lightning | Sunshine Coast | Queensland | Belinda Reynolds | USC Stadium | 2016 | 2017 | 8 | 2 | 2018 | |
West Coast Fever | Perth | Western Australia | Dan Ryan | RAC Arena | 1996 [lower-alpha 1] | 2017 | 8 | 1 | 2022 |
Club | Icon | Location | State | Home venue | Est. | SSN seasons | SSN premierships | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First | Last | Total | Total | Most recent | ||||||
Collingwood Magpies | Melbourne | Victoria | John Cain Arena | 2016 | 2017 | 2023 | 7 | — | — |
The following table shows a list of all of venues that have been used throughout the 2023 Suncorp Super Netball season. Where venues have had other/sponsored names, only those names in place from when the venue was being used in the league have been listed.
Venue | Other/sponsored name(s) | Location | State | Capacity | First used | Current tenant(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sydney SuperDome | Qudos Bank Arena (2017–present) | Sydney | New South Wales | 18,000 | 2017 | New South Wales Swifts |
Perth Arena | RAC Arena (2018–present) | Perth | Western Australia | 14,500 | 2017 | West Coast Fever |
John Cain Arena | Hisense Arena (2017–2018) Melbourne Arena (2018–2020) | Melbourne | Victoria | 10,500 | 2017 | Melbourne Vixens Melbourne Mavericks |
Ken Rosewall Arena | Sydney | New South Wales | 10,000 | 2021 | New South Wales Swifts Giants Netball | |
Adelaide Entertainment Centre | Adelaide | South Australia | 9,600 | 2018 | Adelaide Thunderbirds | |
Queensland State Netball Centre | Nissan Arena (2019–present) | Brisbane | Queensland | 5,000 | 2019 | Queensland Firebirds |
Netball SA Stadium | Priceline Stadium (2017–2020) | Adelaide | South Australia | 3,200 | 2017 | Adelaide Thunderbirds |
Silverdome | Launceston | Tasmania | 3,200 | 2017 | ||
UniSC Arena | USC Stadium (2017–2022) | Sunshine Coast | Queensland | 3,000 | 2017 | Sunshine Coast Lightning |
The following table shows a list of all of venues that have been used throughout the entirety of Suncorp Super Netball. Where venues have had other/sponsored names, only those names in place from when the venue was being used in the league have been listed.
Beginning in 2019, a structured round-robin tournament known as the Team Girls Cup has been conducted, named for the titular campaign established in 2017 that aims to decrease the dropout rate in junior netball. [42] The league's eight teams are divided into two pools, where they play each of their fellow pool members once. A fourth round is then held to determine final placings across the combined pools, and a champion is crowned from the match held between the two top-ranked pool teams. Matches are held over three consecutive days and are all played at the same venue. Locations to have hosted the tournament so far include Brisbane, Melbourne and the Gold Coast.
Season | Champions | Runners-up | Score | Venue | Grand Final MVP | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | Collingwood Magpies | Melbourne Vixens | 39–33 | Queensland State Netball Centre | Shimona Nelson (Collingwood Magpies) | [43] |
2020 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Ken Rosewall Arena | — | [44] | ||
2021 | Not held due to COVID-19 pandemic | [45] | ||||
2022 | Melbourne Vixens | West Coast Fever | 45–43 | Parkville Stadium | Kate Moloney (Melbourne Vixens) | [46] |
2023 | West Coast Fever | Adelaide Thunderbirds | 49–41 | Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre | Sasha Glasgow (West Coast Fever) | [47] |
2024 | New South Wales Swifts | Melbourne Vixens | 45–44 | Ken Rosewall Arena | Maddy Proud (New South Wales Swifts) | [48] |
The regular season is played across 14 rounds, with the league's eight teams playing each other twice in home and away fixtures.
+ | Team also won the minor premiership for finishing on top of the ladder |
^ | Player also won the Player of the Year Award |
Season | Premiers | Runners-up | Score | Venue | Grand Final MVP | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Giants Netball | 65–48 | Brisbane Entertainment Centre | Karla Pretorius (Queensland Firebirds) | [10] [11] [12] |
2018 | Sunshine Coast Lightning (2) | West Coast Fever | 62–59 | Perth Arena | Caitlin Bassett (Sunshine Coast Lightning) | [13] [14] [15] [49] |
2019 | New South Wales Swifts | Sunshine Coast Lightning | 64–47 | Brisbane Entertainment Centre | Samantha Wallace (New South Wales Swifts) | [20] [21] |
2020 | Melbourne Vixens | West Coast Fever (2) | 66–64 | Nissan Arena | Mwai Kumwenda (Melbourne Vixens) | [24] [25] [26] |
2021 | New South Wales Swifts (2) | Giants Netball (2) | 63–59 | Nissan Arena | Maddy Turner (New South Wales Swifts) | [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] |
2022 | West Coast Fever | Melbourne Vixens | 70–59 | RAC Arena | Sasha Glasgow (West Coast Fever) | [34] [35] [36] [37] |
2023 | Adelaide Thunderbirds | New South Wales Swifts | 60–59 | John Cain Arena | Eleanor Cardwell (Adelaide Thunderbirds) | [50] |
Seasons | Live broadcasters |
---|---|
2017–2021 [63] | Nine Network Telstra |
2022–present [64] | Fox Sports Kayo Sports |
In January 2019, Netball Australia announced it would form an independent commission to become the governing body of Suncorp Super Netball. [65] In April 2019 they named five commissioners which included Marne Fechner, Netball Australia's CEO. Two more commissioners were appointed in May and August 2019. [66] [67] [68]
In October 2016, Suncorp Group was announced as Netball Australia's principal partner from 2017 to 2021. The agreement included naming rights to the new league. [9] [69] [70] [71] In August 2021 this agreement was renewed for another five years. [72] Other sponsorship partners include the Australian Institute of Sport, Nissan Australia, Origin Energy, HCF, ASICS, Cadbury and Gilbert Netball. [73]
Queensland Firebirds are an Australian professional netball team based in Brisbane, Queensland. 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. Firebirds were the most successful team during the ANZ Championship era, playing in five grand finals and winning three premierships, in 2011, 2015 and 2016. They were the only team to win back to back ANZ Championship titles.
Adelaide Thunderbirds are an Australian professional 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 five premierships. They won their first two premierships in 1998 and 1999 during the Commonwealth Bank Trophy era, their third and fourth in 2010 and 2013 during ANZ Championship era, and their sixth in 2023, 2024 during the suncorp netball 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, and are the first and only team to win a Trophy at all 3 eras.
Melbourne Vixens is an Australian professional netball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Victoria in Suncorp Super Netball. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. The team was formed in 2007 when Netball Victoria merged its two former Commonwealth Bank Trophy league teams, Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne Kestrels. Vixens have won three premierships, in 2009, 2014 and 2020.
West Coast Fever is a professional Australian netball team based in Perth, Western Australia. Since 2017 they have played in Suncorp Super Netball. Between 2008 and 2016, they competed in the ANZ Championship. Between 1997 and 2007, as Perth Orioles, they competed in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy league. During the ANZ Championship era, Fever were the only Australian team not to win a title, play in a grand final or feature in a finals series. However, during the Suncorp Super Netball era they emerged as challengers. They were grand finalists in both 2018 and 2020, and eventually claimed their first premiership in 2022.
New South Wales Swifts are an Australian professional 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.
Geva Kate Mentor CBE is a former England netball international. She has competed for England in six Commonwealth Games. She was a member of the England team that won the gold medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She was also a member of the England teams that won the bronze medal at the 2006 and 2010 Commonwealth Games and at the 2011, 2015 and 2019 Netball World Cups. She captained England at the 2015 Netball World Cup.
Stephanie Fretwell, previously known as Stephanie Wood, is a former Australia netball international, who currently plays for the Sunshine Coast Lightning in the Super Netball competition.
Sunshine Coast Lightning are a professional Australian netball team based at the University of the Sunshine Coast. The team was formed in 2016 as a joint venture between the university and Melbourne Storm. Since 2017 they have played in Suncorp Super Netball. Lightning have played in three grand finals, winning premierships in 2017 and 2018.
Giants Netball are an Australian professional 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.
The Suncorp Super Netball Grand Final Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual Suncorp Super Netball award in Australia.
Sophie Muriel Garbin is an Australian netball player. She was a member of the New South Wales Swifts teams that won the 2019 and 2021 Suncorp Super Netball titles. In 2017 she was also a member of the Western Sting team that won the Australian Netball League title. She was also a member of the Australia team that won the bronze medal at the 2018 Fast5 Netball World Series. She also sits on the board of the Australian Netball Players’ Association. Garbin's older sister, Darcee Garbin, is an Australia women's basketball international.
The 2019 Suncorp Super Netball season was the third season of the premier netball league in Australia. The season began on 27 April and concluded on 15 September 2019, however it was suspended for most of the month of July due to the Netball World Cup, which was played in Liverpool.
The 2020 Suncorp Super Netball season was the fourth season of the premier netball league in Australia. The season was originally scheduled to commence on 2 May, though was delayed to 1 August due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The defending premiers, New South Wales Swifts were eliminated in the first week of the finals series by the eventual runners-up West Coast Fever. The premiers were the Melbourne Vixens, who defeated the Fever by two goals in the Grand Final at Nissan Arena in Brisbane.
The 2021 Suncorp Super Netball season was the fifth season of the premier netball league in Australia. The season commenced on 1 May and concluded with the Grand Final on 28 August. The defending premiers were the Melbourne Vixens, but they were unsuccessful in making the finals series. The New South Wales Swifts won their second premiership in three years, after defeating Giants Netball 63–59 in the Grand Final.
The 2019 New South Wales Swifts season saw New South Wales Swifts compete in the 2019 Suncorp Super Netball season. Briony Akle guided Swifts to their second premiership. Despite losing their new captain, Maddy Proud, Kate Eddy and Lauren Moore to season-ending injuries, Swifts finished the regular season in second place. In the major semi-final, they lost to Sunshine Coast Lightning. However, they then defeated Melbourne Vixens in the preliminary final to qualify for the grand final where they faced Lightning again. Lightning were the champions in both 2017 and 2018 and had finished the 2019 regular season as minor premiers. As a result, Lightning started the grand final as favorites. Meanwhile, Swifts had begun the season as underdogs. They were not expected to have a good season. However, in the grand final they defeated Lightning 64–47 to emerge as champions.
Briony Akle is an Australian former netball player and current netball coach. Between 1999 and 2004, Akle played for Sydney Swifts in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy league. Akle was a member of the Sydney Swifts teams that won premierships in 2001 and 2004. Since 2017 she has been head coach of New South Wales Swifts, guiding them to the 2019 and 2021 Suncorp Super Netball titles.
The 2022 Suncorp Super Netball season was the sixth season of the premier netball league in Australia. The season commenced on 26 March and concluded with the Grand Final on 3 July. The defending premiers were the New South Wales Swifts, who narrowly missed out on the finals series. The West Coast Fever won their very first premiership in the club's history, after defeating the Melbourne Vixens 70–59 in the Grand Final.
The 2023 Suncorp Super Netball season was the seventh season of the premier netball league in Australia. The season commenced on Saturday 18 March and concluded with the Grand Final on Saturday 8 July at John Cain Arena. The defending premiers were the West Coast Fever, who were eliminated in the Preliminary Final by the New South Wales Swifts. The Adelaide Thunderbirds won their first premiership in 10 years, narrowly defeating the New South Wales Swifts 60-59 after an extra time Grand Final thriller. This season was the last season to feature the Collingwood Magpies, who withdrew from the competition at the end of the season due to financial difficulties.
Bridey Condren is an Australian netballer, playing for the Sunshine Coast Lightning in the Suncorp Super Netball league.