Former Diamonds coach Lisa Alexander stands by Sanmarie Visser Super Netball signing criticism

Former Diamonds coach Lisa Alexander is standing by her criticism of the Adelaide Thunderbirds’ signing of South African international Sanmarie Visser. Find out what she said inside.

Former Diamonds coach Lisa Alexander is standing by her criticism of the Adelaide Thunderbirds’ signing of South African international Sanmarie Visser.

Alexander acknowledged she may have used language that was slightly “over the top” in referring to the “death of the @NetballAust (Netball Australia) pathway” when talking about the signing of Visser as a temporary replacement player on X, formerly Twitter.

But she remains concerned around the club’s decision to bypass other pathway players to offer an opportunity to a 21-year-old who is not an established international star.

“I am perplexed about the decision, to be fair, from Adelaide, particularly because Adelaide have really gone down a pathway where, yes, of course, they’ve got some terrific Jamaican imports - and I don’t want to change that at all - (but they’ve got a track record of developing their local talent),” she said.

Former Diamonds head coach Lisa Alexander. Picture: AAP

“I would have hoped that we would have had somebody in our pathway, even in another state, that could have taken that spot.

“People in high places at Netball Australia are saying this to me behind closed doors, but I’m the one that’s going to stand up and take the hits, because I believe our players and our coaches deserve to have the first chance of getting these spots as long as they’re up to it.”

A young midcourter/defender, Visser made her debut for the Proteas at the Netball Nations Cup in England earlier this year and is undoubtedly a rising star of the sport.

She has been signed as cover for goaler Romelda Aiken-George, who is battling a minor knee injury and may not be ready for the Super Netball opener next month.

Thunderbirds general manager of high performance Jace Bode said Visser added versatility and balance to Adelaide’s list.

Sanmarie Visser defends against new Firebirds signing Mary Nuba Cholhok. Picture: Getty Images for England Netball

“We already have a number of options in our shooting end so we decided to bring Sanmarie into the environment to add further team balance,” Bode said.

“Between Lucy Austin, Lauren Frew, Kayla Graham, and Georgie Horjus, we felt confident in our depth in the shooting end, and … Sanmarie has played across both the midcourt and defensive units and we look forward to working with her.”

Super Netball is regarded as the world’s premier netball competition and no caps are currently in place on the number of international players allowed for each side.

Interestingly, Alexander is not arguing for these either.

However, she has concerns around opportunities for the next generation of Australian players, especially in a competition which attracts significant government funding.

Lisa Alexanxer (left) during her time as Diamonds coach in 2020. Picture: AAP

But she said she had been “flummoxed” by people calling into question her character after she questioned Visser’s addition to the T-Birds’ squad.

“People were very concerned. They thought I was being like, racist, protectionist, I’m not - we couldn’t get somebody who’s more open to that being world’s best, and that means Australians competing against everyone else as well for their spots,” said Alexander, who is known for using the hashtag #worldclass on her social media posts.

“Our young players need to understand that they are not given a position just because they’re Australian, they have to earn their place.

“But let’s hope that they don’t have to earn it more than others for some other reasons that I haven’t heard yet.”