In the height of the off season I take a look at what is happening in the netball world.

January netball notes

New Southern Steel and Netball Southland chief executive David Bannister wants to make one thing perfectly clear – the franchise isn’t moving its home base from Invercargill to Dunedin.

Last week, the Otago Daily Times reported the Queenslander as saying that from an outsider’s perspective, Dunedin offered appeal and Steel might be better served by relocating there.

Yesterday, he told The Southland Times that his comments had been taken out of context and Southland netball fans had nothing to worry about.

“Most certainly not. If you look at the player base, five out of the 12 are Invercargill girls and our community, financial and corporate support [in Southland] is second to none. Ninety-five per cent of our membership is from there.

“I can’t envisage any move.”

Source

This is a point of interest because so far whatever happens at least for now, the Southern Steel won’t be moving there commercial base to Dunedin. Interesting times lie ahead for Kiwi ANZ Championships if Netball New Zealand restructure goes ahead. A team like the Canterbury Tactix desperately needs to get its book into the black. The tough news is that in an era of rising costs across the board things aren’t going to get any easier. The of hiring the CBS Arena for a season worth of home games, would be staggering to some people. As an educated guess the cost would easily run into six figures , no trouble at all. Speaking of the Tactix judging from these pics they have yet to gain a sponsor for there training gear.

Canterbury Tactix host pre-season games

The Tactix are hosting a pre-season tournament at Lincoln Events Centre on the 11th and 12th of February
The Southern Steel are making the journey up the South Island to compete in this tournament. The feature game between the only two southern teams in the ANZ

Details and Draw

Well this is good news for Tactix fans and supporters. I am sure the games are being held out at the Lincoln Events Centre because no other suitable venue was available. The only suitable venue would have been Pioneer Recreation and Sport Centre. Otherwise I have called the venue Pioneer Stadium in past entires. QEII as a venue is still waiting to be bulldozed due to quake damage. Christchurch suffers from a serious shortage of venues in general. It is going to be a future issue for event planners. Incidental what happens if a big aftershocks hits during a Canterbury Tactix home game this year?

At least of parts of Pioneer Recreation and Sport Centre have been evacuated if after a 5.0 after shock. A mandatory engineering inspection is then done. I don’t know the policy for the CBS Arena. But given the differences between the buildings a 5.0 shouldn’t shut the place down.

In the below entry I take a look at the New CEO of Netball Southland and the Southern Steel.

New CEO for Netball Southland and Southern Steel

Netball Southland and the Southern Steel franchise have a new chief executive following a search which spanned both sides of the Tasman.

Queenslander David Bannister has been appointed to the joint role, replacing Julie Paterson who takes over as chief executive of the Auckland-based LG Mystics on January 20.

“After 18 years in the industry it’s got to the stage where I want to hold the reins and lead an organisation. I’ve come right through the pathways in sports development and administration and now is the right time,” Bannister said.

“The challenge of this role really appealed to me. Netball is the number one female sport in Australasia and the ANZ Championship is the premier competition for netball in the world – who wouldn’t want to be involved in something like that?”

The education and development manager for Queensland Rugby League for the past two years, Bannister brings a wealth of experience to the position. He previously spent nine years with Queensland Cricket in both management and development roles, while a stint as national coach and director of coaching for the Malaysia Cricket Association in Kuala Lumpur in 2004 adds international experience to his credentials.

Full Article

Read the full article. I can only see positives in David Bannister appointment. To start with I think the appointment of someone outside of the Southern Steel catchment area,avoids any internal politics. By that I mean the Otago region has felt short changed in terms of representation in the management of the Steel. This stems from the Steel being a combination of the geographical area covered by the old, Otago Rebels and Southern Sting. If David had anything to do with the success the Queensland State of Origin side success of the years, then I look forward to his managerial input at the Steel.

Now why can’t my beloved Canterbury Tactix snag some fresh faces to run the teams back room?
It doesn’t have to mean the Tactix CEO necessary gets the sack.

In the below entry I take a look at the changes made to netball rule book.

Netball Rule Changes

Source

Make sure you have a read of the slight changes to the rules. No major surgery has taken place. The changes to extra time interest me the most. The one minute half time break during extra time adds a nice extra dimension. Coaches will need to make quick decisions about what, if any changes are needed to there line ups. Will the brief half time break in extra time change the result of games?
I can’t say either way but I do look forward to finding out. I am still aggravated by the unwillingness to trial a tactical interchange bench in the regular game of netball. A tactical interchange bench would make the game of netball. It would eliminate those fake injury time outs that happen when things are going badly. Lastly a tactical interchange bench would award coaches who are very good tactically and also reward sides that have depth on there bench.

I take a look at the netball season ahead.

The Season Ahead

2012 Calendar

March sees the Lois Muir Challenge and ANZ Championship pre-season. The Lois Muir Challenge remains a part of the player development pathways that need to be addressed in New Zealand. In April the ANZ Championship starts and finishes in July. When the Canterbury Tactix play the Northern Mystics at home, I will get to see Anna Scarlett in action for the first time since she returned to the sport. Due to circumstances I have only seen her play for the Mystics on TV.
Will the Mystics go one better and win the ANZ Championship?
Its to soon to tell but I would like to think so. More on this as we get closer to the ANZ Championship.

I am not sorry that the Silver Ferns won’t be undertaken a January tour. I think there is still a Silver Ferns camp at the start of the season for some reason. In January the players should be resting or undertaking ANZ Championship pre=season work. The New World Netball Series takes place in September with teams and venues to be named. The Lions Foundation National Netball Champs fits in its usual slot. A return to normal scheduling will greatly benefit the sport of netball. As I have already noted last years schedule was awful. One last thing my message to mother nature is to give us aftershocks that frighten visiting ANZ Championships off there game when they come to Christchurch. About a 5.0 – 5.5 aftershocks will do. Enough to frighten visiting teams but not enough to upset the locals.

I take a look at the Canterbury Tactix new website in the below entry.

Canterbury Tactix New Website

The Canterbury Tactix have a new website. Almost anything would have been better then the old website the Tactix had. The new website isn’t bad at all. If I had a complaint its would be, that the website doesn’t give the user any reason to return. The way to fix this issue would be to have a player and coach blog. Which player or coach would you like to see blog on the Tactix website?
I would go for go Leigh Gibbs and Anna Galvan. The insight Gibbs could offer should be enough to make her a good blogger. As for my choice of Galvan I would take the chance that her friendly nature would translate into being a good blogger.

On the positive side of the ledger, I absolutely love what I presume is the Tactix new training outfit. It can be seen in the new player heads shots. If they aren’t already the Tactix need to look at securing a dedicated sponsor for there training outfit. Any new sponsorship the Tactix can gain puts them closer to getting there books in the black.

In the below entry I look at a number of netball related stories.

December Netball Notes

England Win FastNet

England have broken Australasia’s stronghold on world netball titles, yesterday defeating New Zealand in the final of the World Fastnet Series in Liverpool.

In a sport that can throw up monotonous offerings at international level, with Australia and New Zealand dominating the world scene, England proved popular winners of the Fastnet crown.

While the three-day tournament is not seen as a top-tier event, England’s win is significant considering it has been more than 30 years since a country from outside New Zealand and Australia has won an IFNA tournament.

The last time was 1979, when the world championships were shared between the two transtasman nations and Trinidad & Tobago.

Winners of the first two world series titles, the Fastnet Ferns were gunning for a hat-trick in yesterday’s final. But their bid effectively ended during a rampant third-quarter from England, with the hosts making the most of their powerplay, outscoring New Zealand 16-8 to bolt out to a seven-point lead.

With the games played over six-minute quarters, New Zealand were forced to throw caution to the wind in the final quarter as they tried to engineer a comeback.

Source

New Zealand to Host FastNet

There was no free to air TV coverage of FastNet in New Zealand. I don’t know why New Zealand bothered to send such a strong side to the tournament. Last years side won the tournament would have been fine. Last year side won the daft tournament and they would have had more experience with the concept then this year squad.

World Netball Series, the thrilling showcase competition for the world’s most important women’s team sport, will be coming to Auckland, New Zealand, in November 2012. The International Federation of Netball Associations (IFNA) today announced that Netball New Zealand has been awarded the right to host the three-day competition from 9-11 November. The tournament will take place at the superb Vector Arena in Auckland.

Source

So there is enough fans of pointless net for Netball New Zealand to be keen to host it. Myself I would have rather Netball New Zealand lobbied INFA for more important items on the agenda. One such item in my book would be to ensure that the best rather then neutral
umpires take charge of International’s. So you can all stop complaining about neutral umpires now because pointless net has made it to the Southern Hemisphere.

Southern TeamCo chairwoman Janet Copeland Concern at the ANZ Championship Financial Model

Southern TeamCo chairwoman Janet Copeland has expressed concerns about the trans-Tasman netball league’s financial model.

The Southland Times can reveal Steel suffered a $45,000 loss during the 2010 financial year and they are expected to post a worse result for their 2011 financial year, which finished yesterday.

Copeland did not want to provide a figure for this year until it was confirmed, but acknowledged it would be “substantially more” than last year and said it was “not where they want to be”.

During the past year, Steel had also gone to the Community Trust of Southland for an additional $100,000 grant which had been turned down.

The global financial crisis had impacted heavily on the way Steel had been able to do business this year and Copeland said most professional sporting franchises in New Zealand were battling to increase revenue and sponsorship in the present economic climate.

Copeland also hit out at the financial model of the ANZ Championship, which she said was not working, with almost all of the five New Zealand franchises struggling financially.

Source

This is going to be a story to watch. I still maintain that at the creation of the ANZ Championship, Netball New Zealand sold out to pay TV for to little. Now it is to soon for me to say ” I told you so.” Before I can say that the effects of Netball New Zealand Structural Overhaul need to be seen, if it goes ahead. In the mean time consider this if Netball New Zealand had gotten a good enough deal from pay TV should there not be enough money to keep, Kiwi ANZ Championship teams afloat?
Not to mention there be enough money to ensure the ANZ Championship umpires get paid?

To stay afloat Kiwi ANZ Championship sides are going to have to put a bigger then normal focus on recruiting the best sport/private sector manages. Innovation and thinking outside of the square will be key to the survival of any business sporting or otherwise this decade.

]]> http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/12/03/2011-december-netball-notes/feed/ 0 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/netball-new-zealand-structural-overhaul/ http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/netball-new-zealand-structural-overhaul/#comments Wed, 23 Nov 2011 08:02:22 +0000 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/?p=10849 Continue reading →]]> Introduction

I take a look at look Netball New Zealand structural overhaul that is in the works.

Netball New Zealand Structural Overhaul

New Zealand netball bosses are planning a radical structural overhaul, addressing concerns money is getting tied up in administration instead of hitting the ground.

Netball New Zealand chief executive Raelene Castle last week travelled the country meeting netball leaders to outline proposed changes to the regional structure.

The plan would abolish the regional set-up and move to a zone-based model.

Five zones will be created, each aligned with an ANZ Championship franchise and responsible for delivering the strategy for the game from the grassroots level through to the high-performance end.

Source

My Ten Cents

This move has been badly needed since the creation of the ANZ Championship. The current structure worked fine for the old National Bank Cup which had two additional teams, then the number of Kiwi sides in the ANZ Championship. I also do wonder if the current structure has contributed to the lack of development pathways which I have dealt with in past entries. The planned changes would bring the current structure closer to what the Australians are using to there success. In Australia you basically have state netball associations and then the ANZ Championship franchises.
Would this move mean more funds would become available to the grass roots of the game?
Well I would like to think so. Kiwi ANZ Championship sides face the tough task of recruiting the best managers from both the sporting and corporate world. Having a more consolidated regional structure could help towards this. Then it the teams have to ensure they hire the right person for the right job which is the hardest part.

The big question that remains is if blatant self interest will prevent the reforms from being undertaken?
Only time will tell.

]]> http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/netball-new-zealand-structural-overhaul/feed/ 0 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/gold-coast-awarded-2018-commonwealth-games/ http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/gold-coast-awarded-2018-commonwealth-games/#comments Wed, 16 Nov 2011 07:45:00 +0000 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/?p=10828 Continue reading →]]> Introduction

In the below entry I take a look at the Gold Coast being awarded the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast

LATEST: Australia’s Gold Coast has been chosen to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games, the event’s governing body said in St Kitts and Nevis today.

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) opted for Gold Coast by a 43-27 margin over its only rival, the Sri Lankan city of Hambantota.

The subtropical beachside region of Queensland will bring the Games to Australia for a fifth time, after Sydney in 1938, Perth (1962), Brisbane (1982) and Melbourne (2006).

“We’ve done a lot of hard work and it was very clear earlier in the week that there were a lot delegates wanting to support Hambantota,” a jubilant Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said. “It’s been a very, very close vote.

“There was a good chance that we weren’t going to make it. We had seven (presentation) rehearsals, we’ve lobbied everybody, people have had jet-lag all week.

Source

Well this is a positive thing having a Commonwealth Games so close to New Zealand backyard. New Zealand is never going to host the Commonwealth Games again. The country lacks the infrastructure to cope with the number of visitors that would come. Auckland commuter train network couldn’t even cope with the opening of the Rugby World Cup . The overflow of events means that to many venues would have to be built that would only see one time use. Some kind of temporary stadium construction would be worth looking into , if the country had better under lying infrastructure.

So a Commonwealth Games held in Australia is about as good as it is going to get for Kiwi sports fans. From a purely netball point of view the Australian Diamonds will enjoy home ground advantage at both the next world champs at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. On another note there is a push to get Beach Volleyball ball as a Commonwealth Games sport. I think it would be great for future top level Kiwi Beach Volleyball players to have more opportunities in there chosen sport. If your of the school of thought that thinks that the number of sports at the Commonwealth Games should be culled you may be unhappy. Seeing the number of Commonwealth Games sports culled would allow a wider number of countries to host the games. The nature of the world tour makes it hard for the likes of Jason Lochhead and co to qualify for the Olympics. So I can why those who follow the sport of beach volleyball in New Zealand may think its a good idea.

]]> http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/16/gold-coast-awarded-2018-commonwealth-games/feed/ 0 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/10/2011-november-netball-notes-part-one/ http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/10/2011-november-netball-notes-part-one/#comments Thu, 10 Nov 2011 10:27:31 +0000 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/?p=10793 Continue reading →]]> Introduction

I take a look at a variety of netball related stories in the below entry.

November Notes Part One

Tauranga to host Pre-Season Tournament

Tauranga’s days as a netball backwater are over after the city beat off bids from Sydney and Melbourne to host all 10 ANZ championship teams in a three-day pre-season tournament next year.

Already given the green light to host three transtasman competition games next season involving Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic, Tauranga’s TECT Arena will be overflowing with the world’s best talent from March 2-4 for the competition’s only official pre-season tournament.

It is being jointly hosted by Transtasman Netball, Tauranga City Venues and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic in March 2012.

For the first time since the competition was established in 2008 all 10 teams will contest the pre-season tournament, with SKY Television also set to use Tauranga as the backdrop for its pre-packaged tournament visuals.

Ervin McSweeney, TCVL general manager, said he and Magic chief executive Sheryl Dawson put together the bid after ANZ Championship organisers sent a letter to all 10 netball franchises asking for expressions of interest in hosting the tournament.

Source

I have no problem with Tauranga hosting a pre-season tournament . My only suggestion would be that the tournament is rotated on a yearly basis location wise. In other words words the tournament should be held in say Tauranga, Timaru and Queenstown on a annual basis. It is important that netball fans and supporters in the South Island who live outside of Christchurch,Dunedin and Invercargill get a taste of the ANZ Championship. This can really apply to younger fans of the sport who have no control over where there parents live.

The Canterbury Tactix new management group want to heap the players with responsibility and accountability for next year’s trans-Tasman netball competition.

Coach Leigh Gibbs had her squad together for the first time last weekend – minus two English imports Stacey Francis and Jo Harten – and said the initial enthusiasm and excitement, though encouraging, would mean nothing if it didn’t last the season.

Gibbs comes with a wealth of experience while her assistant Julie Seymour has more hands on experience with the side, being involved as a player or assistant for the last four seasons.

But, as Gibbs said, they can bring as much tactical nous and experience as they like, if the players don’t buy into what the franchise is trying to do and take more responsibility for their actions on and off the court, the results won’t come.

“It’s about creating the right environment and getting them [the players] to buy into it. We can talk until we’re blue in the face but if they don’t buy into it and do the work, then they won’t progress, and the Tactix won’t progress.”

Gibbs said the initial enthusiasm from the team was pleasing and a lot of that came from the franchise approaching “the right people”

Source

Well it makes sense that the Canterbury Tactix squad would want to have a early pre-season meet up. New head coach Leigh Gibbs will have wanted to assess her teams fitness. IMO Gibbs will have also wanted to take a closer look at the members of her squad weakness and strengths. It is always harder to put the right person in the right position or job vacancy, then it is to simple hire the right person. This applies equally to sport , politics , you name it. How well Gibbs can mould and blend her side will help determine if they collect the wooden spoon or finish closer to mid table.

]]> http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/10/2011-november-netball-notes-part-one/feed/ 0 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/02/2011-november-netball-notes/ http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/02/2011-november-netball-notes/#comments Wed, 02 Nov 2011 09:53:00 +0000 Luke http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/?p=10746 Continue reading →]]> Introduction

In the below entry I take a look at a variety of Netball related stories.

November Netball Notes

Canterbury Tactix 2012 playing roster filled

The Canterbury Tactix have filled their 2012 roster with two top athletes; one local and a second import.

England defender Stacey Francis will be announced next week as the Tactix second import after their application to bend the rules was granted by ANZ Championships organisers TTNL.

Former Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic and Northern Mystics midcourter Keshia Grant is the final piece of the Tactix 2012 puzzle.

Since starting in the sport as a 14-year-old, Francis’ rise has been a quick one. She first played in the English Superleague as a 17-year-old, played in the English under-17, under-19 and under-21 teams and now, as a 23-year-old, has played 20 tests for England including both games against the Silver Ferns earlier this month.

She prefers goal defender, but can play goal keep and wing defence too and said travelling around the world to a city still finding its feet after the February 22 earthquake, did not faze her.

Source

An interesting move from the Canterbury Tactix.
Just how good a player is Stacey Francis?
Well you have to bear in mind that Francis will be coached by Leigh Gibbs a defensive coach. So it looks like a case of selecting Francis on potential more then anything else. If the Tactix can retain Francis for several seasons she could well develop into a very good player. Keshia Grant is a mid court player but I would think that the same would apply to her. Only time will tell if the Tactix can retain these two players and how much improvement they will show.

Complete 2012 ANZ Championship Squad

Complete Squads
Teams gains and losses

There isn’t a lot left for me to comment on. The most noticeable absentee from any of the squads is Natasha Chokljat. Why Chokljat has chosen to sit out next season I really have no idea. That only leaves the Southern Steel picking Jodi Brown and Demelza McCloud in there squad. Neither of those two players are going to offer a great deal in the future. McCloud is one of the games great characters off the court. But that won’t help her team win games.

Sharelle McMahon Podcast

Source

My regular reader Brownie tipped me off to this podcast. For about the first ten minutes Shazza talks about her netball career and if she will turn out for the Australian Diamonds again e.t.c

New Zealand FastNet Ferns Squad named

Source

Shooters
Irene van Dyk
Cathrine Latu
Anna Thompson
Maria Tutaia

Mid Court
Shannon Francois
Camilla Lees

Defenders

Kayla Cullen
Katrina Grant
Anna Scarlett
Sulu Tone-Fitzpatrick
Jess Tuki

As farcical as I find FastNet to be, it is great to know that Katrina Grant will be making her come back from injury.
Why not have Ellen Halpenny in the squad?
Irene van Dyk will captain the side.

]]> http://underthepaw.wordpress.com/2011/11/02/2011-november-netball-notes/feed/ 0 Luke