Super Netball: Round 2 descends into chaos

Not one, but two chaotic ends to this weekend’s games have thrown the Super Netball competition into chaos, writes Emma Greenwood.

The Super Netball competition has been thrown into chaos after two farcical issues caused havoc to the weekend’s results.

While most attention has been grabbed by the abandoned match between the Adelaide Thunderbirds and NSW Swifts at Netball SA Stadium on Saturday night, the round ended in chaos on Sunday after an umpire error impacted a thrilling Melbourne derby.

Melbourne Vixens shooter Mwai Kumwenda sank a super shot after the buzzer to give the Vixens a 62-61 come-from-behind victory over the Collingwood Magpies in the final match of the round.

But it soon emerged that umpires had erred in allowing the Vixens consecutive centre passes in the dying stages of the match.

The Pies immediately recognised the error and players and coach Nicole Richardson attempted to appeal, arguing they should have had possession given centre passes alternate during the game.

But the match went on, with the Vixens ultimately claiming a thriller.

Mwai Kumwenda won the game late for the Vixens. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Netball South Australia and the Adelaide Thunderbirds need to answer crucial questions about the decision to sign off on Netball SA Stadium preparations after a botched court preparation ultimately led to the farcical Super Netball match abandonment against the NSW Swifts.

The match between the Thunderbirds and Swifts was eventually abandoned after a power outage at a high voltage transformer near the Netball SA stadium caused a blackout at halftime, with advice the problem would take hours to resolve.

But the game started an hour after the opening centre pass was scheduled following the decision late in the day to remove the advertising “decals” given the surface difference between them and the rest of the court.

Netball Australia released a statement on Sunday saying it was reviewing both incidents.

But who knew what and when?

As with most inquiries, it’s the key question facing those looking into the farce which left the teams splitting the points, something that could be crucial to their finals hopes later this season.

It’s understood Netball South Australia was happy with the court surface on Friday – a day ahead of the match – before issues were raised by the independent match delegate on game day.

Fans hold torches as a power cut affects parts of the stadium during the match between the Thunderbirds and the Swifts. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)

Why it took the independent delegate – a Netball Australia employee – to raise the issue is likely to be examined in any inquiry given the delay ultimately led to the inability of the game to be finished within the allotted window allowed.

The stadium has an unfortunate history with players suffering significant knee injuries and any issue concerning court quality should have been acted on immediately.

A statement released by Netball South Australia late yesterday said it and Netball Australia were reviewing two “unrelated issues” that caused “disruption” to the match.

“With repair crews expected to take several hours to restore power, the match was not able to be completed in the allocated time frame, so Netball Australia declared the game a draw with points shared between the two teams,” the statement said.

“Earlier in the night, the game was delayed by one hour due to an issue with the playing surface – specifically a slight difference between the surface of the sponsorship decals and the court itself. This was rectified and play went ahead without issue.

“As a result, Netball Australia and Netball SA are now reviewing the process regarding the laying of surface decals by a Netball Australia contractor and the laying of surface lacquer by Netball SA.”

If fault is found with the court preparation, it wouldn’t surprise to see the Swifts appeal the point-share decision.

The Thunderbirds and Swifts embrace after their match was abandoned due to a power issue. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)

NSW Shooter Helen Housby said on Fox Sports’ Pivot program the point share had the potential to impact the season of both the Swifts and Thunderbirds.

“I think if it does impact either ours or the Thunderbirds’ season it will be quite disappointing,” Housby said.

“Obviously we’d love to replay the game and do it properly.”

In the derby debacle, Collingwood coach Nicole Richardson was ropeable after the error late in the dying stages handed the match to the Vixens.

“What happened in the last minute and a half is an absolute fiasco. You cannot have a result like that,” Richardson said.

“This is an elite level competition. You have an automated scoreboard that tells you whose centre pass it is.

“You have a bench who knows exactly whose centre pass it is, but the bench do not have the power to do anything about it. That has cost us the game and that is why I am angry.”

Richardson said her side had been “completely robbed”.

“We would have had an opportunity to go two goals up or an opportunity to starve them of the ball and take some time off the clock,” she said of the tactical ramifications of the error.

“And they shot after the siren anyway.”