Alexander: The stars you need to build a Super Netball powerhouse
Netball is a team sport but a player can be the difference between a good side, and a Super Netball premiership winner. LISA ALEXANDER reveals the players she believes should earn six figures, and the two stars who stand above all else.
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As a Mathematics teacher I enjoy the problem solving that is involved in putting together a squad of netball players under a salary cap.
But as a high-performance coach - it can be a nightmare!
Netball is such a team-oriented sport and unlike the major football codes, we’ve never had the big broadcast dollars where athletes are fighting for $1m contracts or switching clubs and moving cities for an extra $100,000 a year.
The entire salary cap for a Super netball club of 10 players is $890,000 in 2026. So even if your three reserves are on the minimum $46,700 salary, the most you can spend on your seven starting players is $749,900.
Our sport has never had the luxury of rich deals for star players, but are times about to change? Let’s hope so.
The obvious success of the NSW Swifts with Grace Nweke and West Coast Fever’s undefeated run since Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard’s return is ramming home the point that while netball has always seen itself as the ultimate team sport, some players are more valuable than others.
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Can you afford to pay one or two stars more money, or is it better to spread the salary cap relatively evenly among your regular starting players?
Code Sports wrote earlier this year that of the 80 contracted players in SSN, more than 50 are off contract at the end of the season.
So, every club will be looking at their roster and making plans now about recruitment. Will they pursue pay parity or go all-in on marquee players to chase premiership glory?
THE BLUEPRINT
When the Sunshine Coast Lightning were beginning 10 years ago under the ownership of Melbourne Storm, their CEO Dave Donaghy (one of the smartest and more curious CEOs I’ve met in sport) called me and said: “Lisa, how do I put together a roster of talent to win a championship?”
Dave wanted a Netball 101 lesson. We discussed the coaching options available and what positions he should target within a salary cap.
He wanted two marquee players for the upper end of the salaries, a third higher paid player, and then four more average salary players and the three reserves would likely be on or just above the minimum salary.
Head coach Dame Noeline Taurua was an inspired choice by the Lightning on so many levels, and with Kylee Byrne as her assistant coach together they went about uncovering the talent and putting together one of the most successful SSN teams in history.
But the blueprint I put on a whiteboard for Dave in our meeting, still stands true today. It featured (with values adjusted for the 2026 salary cap):
Goal Shooter: International level - $120,000
Goal Attack: A very strong or on the cusp of Diamonds selection - $100,000
Wing Attack: Solid up and coming pathway or experienced - $90,000
Centre: International level - $120,000
Wing Defence: Solid up and coming pathway or experienced - $80,000
Goal Defence: On the cusp of Diamonds selection, younger than GA - $80,000
Goal Keeper: International level - $120,000
Plus, three reserves to complete the squad, each on the $46,700 minimum salary.
Total: $850,100
This formed the framework for the team to negotiate with managers, but also gave them the flexibility to increase offers where required and consider other benefits or allowances such as cars and accommodation.
I believe this balanced perfectly for the SCL at the time, a regional team that needed to attract talent and who had to entice players to join a new club.
It would also be wrong to assume that the players received those salaries, as stated above, it was up to the club to negotiate with managers and players, and it was private and confidential between the club and the player.
But other clubs might have different needs or issues to consider when trying to convince players to move interstate.
TODAY’S MARQUEE MARKET
So how does all this apply to today’s players?
Here is an interesting exercise in hypotheticals and actual analysis for this year based on current players - with maternity leave players Shamera Sterling-Humphrey and Gretel Bueta not currently being considered.
However, if they were to be available next season, they may replace my two top choices now.
If I was leading a SSN club I would be looking to offer Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard or Latanya Wilson a contract up to $200,000 to come to my club.
Fowler-Nembhard should be the highest paid player in SSN and in my eyes is worth $400,000. Nweke with her age and her enormous potential, she is probably worth not much less.
I don’t know if Fowler-Nembhard is off contract, but her next contract should be a life-changer.
Players like Hannah Mundy, Lauren Frew, Ash Ervin, Reilley Batcheldor, Alice Teague-Neeld, Erin O’Brien, Sharni Lambden, Shimona Jok and Macy Gardner should also be earning more than $100,000 on their contracts for next season.
The myth and mystery of netball, and putting a team together for the SSN, is that some of the most important positions in netball are actually very difficult to separate their value.
Wing defence, as many Diamonds will attest, is often overlooked.
The players who can play multiple positions, especially through the centre court, are essential for any team so that is why the likes of Zara Walters, Sunday Aryang, Latanya Wilson and even 19-year-old Grace Whyte should also be seeking six-figure contracts.
And need I mention the capability of offering talent from the Netball Super League in England and even some Silver Ferns who would be willing to test the restraint of trade rule with Netball New Zealand?
It will be interesting to see if there’s any player movement at the end of this season and if any clubs change the way they approach building their squads. And if indeed every club spends their entire salary cap, because many clubs do not spend the full amount.
The other pertinent point to be made here is how long the contract is for the player, many players prefer less money and a two-year contract.
As Dave showed a decade ago, it always pays to do your research and ask for advice.
And, isn’t it amazing that we are talking about potential six-figure deals for our players. But, it also shows netball still has work to do commercially to run with the Tier 1 sports pack.
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Originally published as Alexander: The stars you need to build a Super Netball powerhouse
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