What’s the right balance between local and international players in Suncorp Super Netball?
The number of international players in Australia’s national league displays the strength of the competition but is it coming at the expense of local talent from around the country.
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Are there too many international players in Suncorp Super Netball? It’s a question that has many fans, coaches and players divided.
Debate has been sparked again this week after three major announcements regarding international replacement players.
South African Lenize Potgieter has signed with the Queensland Firebirds, New Zealand’s Kimiora Poi has joined the Collingwood Magpies and in exciting news for the Adelaide Thunderbirds South African Shadine van der Merwe has arrived in town.
The coaching staff at the Thunderbirds — myself included — are thrilled to secure van der Merwe, a specialist wing defence who will replace Beth Cobden who ruptured her ACL a fortnight ago and will be out for the rest of the season.
When only seven players take to the netball court, losing an experienced player like Cobden is very costly for a team and can significantly disrupt the critical balance between youth and experience.
And what van der Merwe brings with her is experience.
In recent years the Thunderbirds have had very limited success, both in terms of wins on the board but also importantly developing players that are able excel and show their potential on the court at the highest level.
Don’t get me wrong we have shown some sparks of brilliance over the last two years, but success doesn’t come from sparks alone; it is the result of consistency and that is something we are continuing to address in 2019.
The underlying problem at the Thunderbirds has been that we simply did not have enough experienced netballers to support our very talented juniors to help them make the transition from “great potential” to “experienced and consistent” players.
One of the major defining moments in my career at the Thunderbirds was in 2002, when I found myself the only junior player on the court.
I was surrounded by the experience of the likes of Bec Johns (Saunders), Peta Squire and Kath Harby-Williams, and it meant my errors or dips in form weren’t as costly to the team and I could develop and learn the game in a supported environment.
After Cobden’s injury, our local junior Maisie Nankivell has done a great job stepping up into the role of wing defence in the interim. However in the world’s best netball competition she cannot be expected to perform consistently at that level and have a low error rate.
Our wing defence position was earmarked for experience, largely to support our two centre players, Kelly Altmann and Hannah Petty, successfully transition into the league.
Too much inexperience makes it impossible for these players to do what they need to do to succeed because errors become too costly, losing margins become too large, and doubt creeps in, damaging confidence and consistency.
In South Australia we are parochial and love to support our local players.
I am just as passionate about that. But it is simply impossible to get results for the team, individual players, sponsors and community when the makeup of the group is not spot on.
So we open our arms to Shadine van der Merwe, and support her in her first game on Sunday when the Thunderbirds take on the Giants.
We know her experience will be vital for the development of our local talent, allowing them to be their best.
Surrounding our up-and-coming players with experience we will make our gains as a team and as a state, and how in time we will produce South Australian Diamonds.
Prior to Sarah Klau being named in the Diamonds World Cup team this week, it has been two years since we have had an SA representative in the Diamonds, a far cry from decades of having three, four, five players representing Australia.
The Thunderbirds are serious when it comes to change: to get back to the days when winning was expected and it was the norm.
New head coach Tania Obst is leading the ship in this direction and decisions made will ensure the right balance is struck between local and international players.
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