Riley Richardson among Australian Kelpies’ squad named for first-ever UK tour

With the Kelpies set to travel to England for the first time for a best-of-three series, wing attack Riley Richardson is confident men’s netball’s international appeal is strengthening.

Australian Kelpies’ wing attack Riley Richardson. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

Riley Richardson hopes the Australian Kelpies’ first-ever tour of the UK can be another catalyst to bolster men’s netball’s profile on an international stage.

Named among a 12-player strong Kelpies squad set to contest a best-of-three test series against England in May, it marks the first time Richardson and the green and gold will travel to Europe as a national team.

And it’ll be just the second time the two teams – from one of the world’s strongest sporting rivalries – have met, the first back in 2022 when the Thorns travelled down under.

Having long contested the Trans-Tasman Series against New Zealand – the Kelpies came away with a thumping four-game sweep over the Net Blacks in October – the national team is also fresh off a gold medal run at the FAST5 Netball World Series in November.

Richardson, who splits his time between Melbourne and Geelong where he is St Joseph’s’ A-grade coach, said the growth of the men’s game across the globe, from Europe to Africa and the Americas, is now giving players like him the chance to compete more often on the biggest stage of all.

“It’s nice to be spreading the profile of the game a bit more, England reached out and offered us this invitational and we were very happy we could accept,” Richardson said of their upcoming tour.

“We’re really happy that all the men’s netball entities around the world are working really hard to provide international level opportunities for their athletes, so we're thrilled.”

Riley Richardson. Picture: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

The Kelpies’ comfortable Trans-Tasman Cup triumph highlighted their on-court dominance, including one 50-goal win, though Richardson insisted there was plenty of hard work ahead of the team in preparation for the tour.
Coach Nerida Stewart has added three new players to her squad – goaler Jordon Webb and defenders Wade Moore and Ronan Pring – while there will be a quick turnaround for players from April’s Australian men’s national championships into a four-week Kelpies training block before flying out to London.

“That will be a challenge for us, but I think we’re up for it,” Richardson said.

The core of the Kelpies’ connections remain strong though, Alastair Punshon a key defensive pillar, while in attack, the almost seamless feeding connection between wing attack Richardson and goal shooter Brodie Roberts was a sight to behold during the Trans-Tasman Cup.

“Brodie’s one of my best friends, and we’ve gone through a lot of state, national and international level netball together,” Richardson said.

“So I feel very at home when he’s by my side when we’re out on court, I feel like we get each others games really well and I think when we play really well, we’re really hard to stop.”

Riley Richardson. Picture: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

While their on-court success is undeniable, the chance to represent the green and gold still does come with its sacrifices for Richardson and his teammates.

A fourth-year medical student, Richardson juggles placements, work, training and coaching – all while self-funding the bulk of expenses to play for his country.

It’s a workload Richardson is content to balance right now, confident the team has the makings of a product both new and existing fans or sponsors can support with pride.

“We think we’re a brand people can really get behind, we aspire to present a hardworking, authentic, accepting culture and we really hope that permeates into everything we do,” he said.

“We’re really hoping to grow the game and really hopeful future generations will receive funding or sponsorships where they don’t have to pay.”

An ongoing cultural shift in promoting sport for all, driven by the growth of women's sport in traditionally male-dominated realms, has been just as impactful for the Kelpies, according to Richardson.

“Our recent success at both the Fast5 (gold) and Trans Tasman continues to grow our profile as well, more exposure is more exposure and we’re really hopeful it will continue to lead to more connections for us,” he said.

It’s understood the games, scheduled for May 25, May 31 and June 1, will be broadcasted on SkySport, as double-headers alongside the UK’s Netball Super League.

St Joseph’s in safe hands

Riley Richardson has returned for a second year as St Joseph’s A-grade coach. Picture: Alan Barber

Richardson will turn to newly appointed St Joseph’s co-coach Tracy Howard to lead the club in his brief absence when on Australian national team duties.

Richardson, who coached Joey’s to their first A-grade grand final appearance in 16 years in 2024, said Howard’s positive impact on the group had already been felt, following her arrival from the Ballarat league.

“She’s brought great new energy, and it’s so good to have a new brain in our midst, someone who thinks about the game differently to what I do, so that’s expanding the girls’ brains,” Richardson said.

“She also runs a really tight ship, everything’s well organised, we’ve got great coaches all the way through this year so I’m really confident we’ll have some whole club success in the senior grades this year.”

After addingstar recruit Kiahna Fallon from South Barwon to their list late last year, the Joey’s’ later signed young goaler Ella Closter from Darley in December.

With Closter also playing under Howard for VNL club’s Western Warriors’ 23-and-under squad, Richardson is excited about what the emerging talent will bring to the GFNL.

“The little bits I’ve seen of her at training so far, I just think she offers us a really strong target and a really unflappable shooting technique, I think she’s going to be really hard to stop,” Richardson said.

Originally published as Riley Richardson among Australian Kelpies’ squad named for first-ever UK tour