Super Netball 2018 to reach new heights after extended pre-season
NETBALL veteran Kim Green says “guns’’ are bigger, legs stronger and bodies fitter than ever before as the Giants work to rewrite history with victory in the Super Netball Grand Final replay against Sunshine Coast Lightning on Sunday.
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NETBALL veteran Kim Green says “guns’’ are bigger, legs stronger and bodies fitter than ever before as the Giants work to rewrite history with victory in the Super Netball Grand Final replay against Sunshine Coast Lightning on Sunday.
Green and fellow Super Netball captains believe the best domestic netball competition in the world, which kicks off this weekend in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, will reach new heights thanks to the fitness of players post a record six-month long pre-season due to the Commonwealth Games.
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And while the sojourn has seen “biceps’ grow’’ thanks to additional gym time, according to Green it has also fed the Giants hunger for redemption against Lighting after their resounding 65-48 defeat in the 2017 season decider.
“There is fire. The group that were part of the grand final really have a little emotion about this game,’’ said Green, making her Super Netball comeback from knee surgery in the game.
“They’ve had an extra long time to think about things.’’
Lightning captain Geva Mentor, who lead England to Commonwealth Games gold over Australia, said it will be difficult to defend the title.
“One thing that excites me about this league this year is it has gone up to another level,’’ she said.
Season two of Super Netball will see eight Australian clubs play over 14 rounds prior to a finals series which will culminate in a Grand Final on the weekend of August 25.
While expansion is still on the backburner, Netball Australia boss Marne Fechner says the game is in a good place.
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Players in Super Netball can pursue full-time careers in Australia after the new Collective Bargaining Agreement came into force ahead of the 2017 season which attracted record crowns and saw TV audiences grow by 22 per cent.
“I have no doubt there will be new benchmarks set for our sport,’’ Fechner said.
While the Giants and Lighting will fight for early boasting rights, the NSW Swifts and Queensland Firebirds are both desperate to show they are top four contenders after disappointing finishes last year.
The Melbourne Vixens were the only established club fro the now defunct ANZ championship to make the top four in 2017 with the other three places secured by clubs formed for the new competition - Lighting, the Giants and the Magpies.
“To miss out on the top four doesn’t sit well with clubs like us,’’ Firebirds captain Gabi Simpson said of her teams fifth place finish and the Swifts’ sixth last season.
“I know it has driven us pre-season. I’ve seen a huge step up in training effort.”
Swifts captain Abbey McCulloch says she expects to see a close game between the two old netball rivals.
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“We want to stake a claim on being a final four contender nice and early,’’ McCulloch said.
“It’s going to be a good game to start the season.’’
The NSW v Queensland double-header is a highlight of the opening round with the Giants taking on Lightening at 1pm and the Swifts playing the Firebirds at 3pm at Qudos Bank Arena on Sunday.
The season opens on Saturday when the Vixens host the Magpies in Melbourne with the Adelaide Thunderbirds playing West Coast Fever in Adelaide on Sunday in the other match of the round.