Now that all 14 rounds of the regular season have been played, we are on the countdown to finals.
On Saturday, the Adelaide Thunderbirds made it eight victories in a row with an 18-goal statement against the Sunshine Coast Lightning, 67-49. The minor premiers are the most in-form team in the top four and remain heavy favourites to take out the trophy.
The Melbourne Mavericks survived a scare from the Queensland Firebirds to keep their four-game winning streak going, 60-57. They head into their first finals campaign fuelled by an unwavering self-belief that makes them the most dangerous team. Anything could happen.
After some shaky form the West Coast Fever got back to their best in a thrilling match against the Melbourne Vixens, 64-55. The visitors needed to win by at least eight goals to claim third place and secure hosting rights for the minor semi-final.
At the start of the year, victory would have been seriously hard to come by against the Vixens, let alone by this margin. However, the second-ranked side are struggling mentally after going nine rounds undefeated and then losing four of their last five outings.
Will they be out of the finals in straight sets? It’s difficult to know if the defending champions still believe they have what it takes to go back-to-back. An injury to shooter Lily Graham hasn’t helped, impacting the depth on offer in their goal circle.
It took the Giants the full 14 rounds but they finally registered a win in 2026. (Getty: Izhar Khan)
To round out the weekend, the Giants did the unthinkable. They finally got their first win of the season, 66-65, beating the NSW Swifts. There were emotional scenes in the Sydney Derby as the team celebrated a positive ending to an extremely tough season, and head coach Nerida Stewart credited their “never-say die attitude”.
But is it RIP for the orange club? It turns out this might have been their last match.
There is so much going on in the sport right now with finals on the horizon, CPA negotiations taking place, all 88 athletes off contract in a matter of weeks and plenty of movement expected for the next signing period. Then there’s the Commonwealth Games team that’s going to be announced on Wednesday and the neglect being shown to men’s netball.
If you missed it, don’t worry — we’ll get you up to speed with our Super Netball Round-Up.
Progress dips in men’s netball
Two of the teams left to contest the title feature head coaches from men’s netball: Dan Ryan at the Fever and Gerard Murphy at the Mavericks.
Every Super Netball side also has male training partners that help the women prepare for competition.
Dan Ryan (far right) has won one premiership and taken his team to two grand finals since becoming the Fever head coach in 2022. (AAP: Joel Carrett)
Yet there is growing frustration from the men’s and mixed netball community regarding the sudden drop off in support and recognition at the top level.
Despite making a valuable contribution to the Diamonds pathway, progress made under the previous administration of Kelly Ryan appears to have been scaled back and unexplained.
In December 2020, the State of the Game Review identified the need to embrace diversity and align with existing organisations not currently governed by Netball Australia, such as the Australian Men’s and Mixed Netball Association (AMMNA), in order to increase reach and chances of funding via sponsors and government grants.
Then in 2021, Netball Australia launched its joint Brisbane 2032 Olympic bid, and the former chief executive acknowledged it had a lot of work to do regarding gender equality.
Gerard Murphy won the AMMNA Championships this year coaching the Victorian Men’s Open side and is now eyeing off a Super Netball title with the Mavericks. (Getty: Kelly Defina)
Boys and men’s make up the fastest growing participation in netball and member organisations have responded by launching M-Leagues and adding male divisions to their state tournaments.
“We are really fortunate that we have a really strong contingent of men and boys already playing the game,” then-CEO Ryan told ABC Sport, “so this is an amazing opportunity for us to wrap our arms around that participation base and make sure they feel included in netball more holistically.
“Whether it’s for the Olympics or not for the Olympics, it is something that is firmly in our sights to do anyway. We want boys to come through and feel like [they have] got an opportunity to play netball just like their mothers and sisters.
“In 10 years’ time, I’d like to think we will be a lot more progressed at better including men and boys in our sport.”
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Although back then Ryan would not confirm whether the bid would be pitching a women’s and men’s event or potentially even a mixed category, she made it clear that in order to convince the IOC it was worthy, it had to make a genuine effort to publicly support men’s netball.
By 2022, new ground was broken between the Diamonds and Kelpies national teams. Double headers were played against New Zealand, captains Liz Watson and Dylan Nexhip were photographed together, and men’s international matches were televised for the first time.
This continued in 2023 and 2024, before disappearing in 2025 altogether. As it stands, there are no plans to stage any more double headers between the Diamonds and the Kelpies.
Another noticeable shift in strategy that happened after Ryan exited Netball Australia came in the form of its 10-year strategic plan, published in November 2025. The Made in Netball document outlines clear goals for Super Netball and the Diamonds but there is no mention of the Kelpies.
Without the recognition of Netball Australia, the athletes can’t even wear the national emblem on their playing uniforms and they continue to bear the full brunt of what it costs to play.
However, it’s not just the Kelpies and top state players that are impacted. It’s every little boy in Australia with a desire to play that can’t see a clear pathway backed by the national body.
It’s worth noting that World Netball — the global governing body — is actually trending the other way. In June 2025, it announced an inaugural Men’s World Cup for 2028.
The Kelpies last played a double header with the Diamonds in 2024. Australian captain Dylan Nexhip holds the trophy. (Getty: Daniel Pockett)
Nexhip recently retired as Kelpies captain to focus on his role as NSW Swifts assistant coach.
“Post-COVID in 2022, we saw an increased burst of opportunity and exposure. It had been years in the making, so reaching that point was a milestone in itself,” he told ABC Sport.
“There are challenges that exist within the progressions of men’s netball, with funding being a major barrier. That is why the connection with Netball Australia is crucial, and it is a relationship that we want to continue to build.
“We have seen the success that joint tours have created, allowing netball fans to see both teams together in the same space, putting on a spectacle.”
What will become of the Giants?
Considering the financial losses of the Giants, it was clear last season that Netball NSW was eager to find someone to take over its second Super Netball licence.
Midcourter Hope White should be one of the first players snapped up from the existing Giants team.
Back then the Mounties Group acquisition was pretty much a done deal until they ran into legal issues with AUSTRAC and their plans were put to the side to await the outcome of the Federal Court trial.
When ABC Sport revealed the competition would no longer be adding new teams in 2027, it became obvious to the interested parties already invested deep in the expansion process that the easier route to join to league would be to change tactics and chase after the Giants licence.
Netball NSW is hoping to keep a second team in its home state, so a bid from the Wests Group that runs the Newcastle Knights is appealing. Their base would sit well outside the Swifts heartland, and they have an existing grassroots connection and stadium ready to play in.
There are long-term intentions here for the Wests Group, who already committed to the idea of a 10-year licence during expansion talks and have submitted plans to council to build a new 12,000 indoor seat arena for the local community.
Nerida Stewart has had her work cut out for her in the first season as Giants coach. (Getty: Kelly Defina)
Don’t forget though that Craig Hutchison’s SEN was promised first dibs at another team in 2023. Word is that SEN have expressed interest in launching a second team in Sydney.
What is better for longevity? We’ve seen the one owner, two clubs model can get tricky. Whereas a regional bid with clear links to the pathway could create stability. It depends how much money SEN can dedicate to resource two teams.
CPA negotiations are ongoing and running later than planned. At this stage the player signing window is still expected to begin after the grand final on July 4.
The Giants reached the grand final twice throughout the Super Netball era. (AAP: Jason O’Brien)
The decision about this new club needs to be made ASAP to ensure the athletes and coaching staff have adequate time to weigh up the future of their careers.
Netball NSW will hand over its recommendations to Netball Australia shortly for approval, if it hasn’t already.
The only alternative to new ownership would be to extend the Giants licence for 12 more months, but all this would do is delay the inevitable, cause further uncertainty and put the member organisation under financial strain.
