191 netballers have played for the Diamonds – More than a third have come from one state
One state stands alone as Australia’s greatest Diamond factory. REBECCA WILLIAMS reveals each state’s contribution to the national cause, and what separates the best from the rest.
Victoria has produced more Australian players than any other state to become the nation’s greatest Diamonds factory.
In an analysis of Netball Australia’s Test cap records, the Vics are on top for the most national representatives ahead of South Australia and NSW.
On the all-time list of 191 capped Diamonds, Victoria has delivered 65 internationals based on the players’ state of origin.
South Australia is next on the list with 45, closely followed by NSW.
Western Australia has had 26 Diamonds, Queensland 10 and Tasmania three.
Victoria bookends the Test cap list with Diamond No.1 Rebecca Bollen and Diamond No.191 Matilda Garrett.
Former Australian captain and champion goaler Sharelle McMahon is Victoria’s most-capped international with 118 to sit second on the all-time list behind NSW’s defensive great Liz Ellis (122).
Diamonds captain and star wing attack Liz Watson also sits in the top 10 for Victoria’s most-capped internationals with 84 (ninth).
Victoria shares the equal-highest representation in the 2024-25 Diamonds squad alongside NSW with five apiece in the 18-player group, while Emily Mannix and Alice Teague-Neeld were also named as invitees.
Netball Victoria’s general manager of high performance and pathways, Megan Simpson, said working to deliver strong Diamonds representation had been a key focus for the sport’s state governing body.
“We are pretty proud of that (Australian representation) and we work pretty hard to try and maintain that,” Simpson said.
“It is one of the key factors that we take into account when we’re assessing all of our programs.
“We are always looking at our programs year on year and making sure we are constantly enhancing them and innovating them to make sure that we deliver those outcomes.
“I don’t know that we outwardly brag, but inwardly we are really proud of it and we’ll speak very positively to those figures.
“Netball Australia are very complimentary of our programs and work really closely with us to make sure that we continue to create that pathway for talent because they recognise that we are one of the strongest contributors to the Diamonds’ success.”
What has made the Victorian netball pathway so successful?
Simpson pointed to culture, a broad participation base, a strength nurturing young talent and a focus on giving opportunities to Victorian talent at the highest level in Super Netball.
While there is no restriction on the number of imports a Super Netball team can field, Netball Victoria enforces a quota on local talent for the Melbourne Vixens.
The Vixens must have 80 per cent of their squad made up of players who have come through the Victorian netball pathways.
Netball Victoria chief executive Andrea Pearman considered the Super Netball league to be a “development opportunity” for the Diamonds and said the focus on local talent at the top level had been a key to the state’s success.
“We are very proud of the fact that when you look at the Vixens and the SSN, we are there foremost to make sure it is a development opportunity for the Diamonds,” Pearman said.
“So we are very protective around the numbers of non-Victorians we have in our team and I think we are the only team in Super Netball that actually has a quota … 80 per cent of our team has to be Victorian or come through our Victorian pathway.
“That is something that probably sets us aside slightly differently from other states.
“It is something that has worked for us … we feel like it is a bit of an ingredient for our success.
“We are very clear that …. while there are commercial opportunities in owning a Super Netball team, it really is the pinnacle of our pathway development and we do see it as the lead-in to the Diamonds.
“Winning is great but it’s not always the only outcome. We will put kids into positions as much for their development as to make sure we win.”
Harnessing talent at the grassroots level had been equally important to Victoria’s success in digging for Diamonds.
Pearman said the state’s participation figure sat at more than 111,000 and was on target for a record total this year.
Half the state’s participation came from regional Victoria, where the football/netball leagues helped drive numbers.
“The pool of great talent that you get to draw from is really, really important,” Pearman said.
“We have the strength of the football/netball leagues, which is a very different product to some other states as well.
“That does play an important role in the whole community coming together but does bring more people in regional Victoria to the game.”
Watson, who came through the Victorian pathway and spent 10 years at the Vixens before her move to the Sunshine Coast Lightning for this year, said a winning culture was drilled into players coming through the junior pathways.
“Right from the start in under-17s, under-19s in Victoria, you are expected to win or be a podium team and that’s been drilled into us right from the start,” Watson said.
“There is always this level of winning and success and being a really strong team and I feel like that brings really good habits in your training and how you can play and then you can carry that on.
“I think that’s been drilled in us as Victorians from the start of our careers in the Netball Victoria pathway and it’s one of their KPIs that you need state teams winning gold medals, if not podiums, and that has been part of the program since I can remember.
“We had incredible leaders at the Vixens, too. With Bianca (Chatfield) there was not a better role to have than when I first started there and so many great coaches and past players along the way.
“Having that mentality that you do want to win and you are expected to win and I feel like to hear that, you have got to carry that into an elite environment because everyone wants to win at this national level.”
Simpson said Victoria’s track record with national coaches had also been a strength.
“We have actually produced incredible Diamonds coaches that have come from Victoria,” Simpson said.
“Joyce Brown, Norma Plummer, Lisa Alexander, they have all come from Victoria.
“So I think that speaks a lot to the development of the athletes that you have great coaches that support that space as well.”
More Coverage
Can Diamonds beat NZ hoodoo: Con Cup talking points
Australia heads to Wellington ahead of its Constellation Cup opener, with the Ferns smarting from a series loss to England. Here’s what the Diamonds would have learnt from those games.
Happy Ellis making mark in sparkling breakout season
Rudi Ellis stunned plenty when she was named as a training partner for the Diamonds squad earlier this year. Next week, she’ll head to New Zealand for the Constellation Cup as Australia’s newest Test player.