Firebirds coaching saga: Club hires Lauren Nourse amid rumours of in-house feuds

Two days out from their season opener, the Firebirds have named a new assistant coach but remain tight lipped on what happened to Sara Francis-Bayman. We dig a little deeper.

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The Queensland Firebirds have rebounded from a horror week to add former Diamonds player Lauren Brown (nee Nourse) to their coaching staff as a part-time assistant two days out from their first game of the season.

Diamonds star Gretel Bueta will also play a role on the coaching bench during her maternity leave.

The appointment comes just days after the shock announcement highly-rated former England international Sara Francis-Bayman was parting ways with the club.

It’s understood Francis-Bayman and new head coach Bec Bulley had vastly contrasting styles, something that eventually led to the split this week.

The Firebirds released a carefully worded statement late on Monday, saying the former England international would leave the club “with immediate effect” and “to uphold the confidentiality of all involved, we will not discuss publicly the reasons behind the decision”.

The addition of Brown and Bueta is a boon for the Firebirds and rookie coach Bulley but can’t hide the fact the bungled Francis-Bayman departure is yet another case of the once-proud Queensland club shooting itself in the foot.

New Queensland Firebirds head coach Rebecca Bulley

In failing to offer a full explanation for the former English Super League premiership coach - she led Loughbrough Lightning to the title in 2021 - and Scotland Thistles assistant’s departure, the Firebirds have thrown fuel on the fire ahead of a season for which they are already rated wooden spoon favourites.

It’s understood there had been tension between the styles of Bulley and Francis-Bayman for some time, with the situation eventually becoming untenable.

But the cryptic club statement only muddies the waters and does little for the reputation of either Francis-Bayman or Bulley, who faces a tough task in her first year, with her task of rebuilding the club now off the court as well as on it.

A Former Firebirds premiership-winning captain and Australian international, Brown will combine her role as director of the Flinders Elite Athlete Program at Matthew Flinders Anglican College on the Sunshine Coast with job assisting Bulley on game days.

“I am really excited to have Lauren on board for the 2023 season,” Bulley said.

“She’s a Firebirds’ legend with a strong connection to the history of our club as well as an excellent coach and mentor.

“I cannot wait to have her join us courtside starting with Sunday’s match against the Thunderbirds.”

Along with the addition of Brown, Bulley will utilise the expertise of Bueta during her maternity leave to provide assistance during the week.

Lauren Nourse has joined the Firebirds

“Gretel has been involved regularly in our training sessions sharing her knowledge and expertise, particularly with our attacking group,” Bulley said.

“This involvement has been fantastic and I am keen for it to continue throughout the season – especially at times when Lauren is attending to her other work commitments.”

Netball Queensland CEO Kate Davies conceded the timing of the Francis-Bayman decision just days out from the season start was difficult.

“There is never a good time for decisions like these and I acknowledge that six days out from our first home game is far from ideal,” Davies said.

It was the last thing the Firebirds needed given they will already be without talismanic shooter Bueta and lost a host of players in the off-season and will be relying on the injection of young and inexperienced players to fill the void.

It has the Birdies rated wooden spoon favourites with bookies, although with newly minted Diamonds Donnell Wallam and Ruby Bakewell-Doran, as well as former national players Kim Ravaillion and Gabi Simpson in their ranks, they cannot be totally counted out.