Team Girls Cup: Will your club’s rising star be playing Super Netball in 2025?

It wasn’t just the stars on show at the Team Girls Cup in Adelaide over the weekend, with plenty of next gen talent on display. EMMA GREENWOOD rates every club’s rising stars.

The Team Girls Cup provided an enticing entrée ahead of the first centre pass of the Super Netball season in less than three weeks’ time.

While all eight teams were in action and the big names were on show, no one wants to show all their cards in the pre-season, with the competition often showcasing the talent of the next generation of stars.

Some will become Super Netball regulars this season, while others are outside their club’s full-time contracted list and will be pushing their case in Super Netball reserves, hoping their time in the big league will eventually come.

Here are the rising stars who most impressed over the weekend and could become household names this season.

Kayla Graham (Thunderbirds)

A training partner with the Thunderbirds for the past two years, Graham won the club’s final contract spot for 2025 and showed over the weekend she’s ready to step up. Like another T-Birds star, Diamond Georgie Horjus, Graham can swing across wing attack and goal attack and showed in Sunday’s final against the Fever - where she racked up 13 feeds and six goal assists - she is ready to step up when needed. Able to slot into the shooting circle as well as act as a midcourt playmaker, Graham also showed off her ability as a goaler at the weekend, a skill that has been enhanced by training against internationals Shamera Sterling-Humphrey, Latanya Wilson and Matilda Garrett on a regular basis.

Kayla Graham of the Thunderbirds. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Sophie Casey of the Thunderbirds. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Sophie Casey (Thunderbirds)

Given she is a training partner and not part of the full-time contract list, fans will have to catch the Thunderbirds’ Super Netball reserves performances to see more of Casey in action this season. But if there is injury or illness to any of the full-time midcourters, coach Tania Obst will have no hesitation in calling on the Matrics player after her TGC performances, including a 20-minute cameo in the final in which she contributed 11 feeds and seven goal assists. Casey was arguably the standout but highlighted the depth the T-Birds have coming through their pathway, with defenders Molly Watson and Tabitha Packer and midcourter Lucy Voyvodic also in action over the weekend.

Ruth Aryang (Fever)

Hardly a new name to most netball fans but Aryang showed over the weekend she’s likely to play a key role for the Fever this season. The toughest part will be how coach Dan Ryan juggles an impressive defensive line-up that includes internationals Fran Williams (England), Kadie-Ann Dehaney (Jamaica) and Aryang’s older sister and Diamonds defender Sunday to give his newest full-time contract holder time on court. The canny understanding she has with Sunday though, makes an Aryang sisters combination an exciting one for the Fever and a nightmare for opposing shooters. Finished the tournament with 13 deflections and five gains over the weekend.

Ruth Aryang of the Fever. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Zoe Cransberg of the Fever. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Zoe Cransberg (Fever)

Cransberg, a Fever training partner since 2022, has been named the club’s 11th player this season as she continues the push to join twin Jordan in the full-time contracted list. It likely means there’ll be little opportunity to add to her five Fever caps, although coach Dan Ryan will have no hesitation in adding her to the match-day list if there’s an injury or form issue with any other member of his midcourt. Impressed in big stints in the preliminary rounds over the weekend, where she racked up 31 feeds and 12 goal assists across three games.

Sharni Lambden (Swifts)

A former Vixens training partner, Lambden finally gets her opportunity on a full-time list with the Swifts this season. The defensive midcourter could get plenty of time this season in a Swifts midcourt missing co-captain Maddy Proud (pregnant), while she showed her versatility at the weekend rotating into goal defence at times. Likely to be competing with Allie Smith for time in the WD bib in the main, Lambden is a shrewd pick-up for the Swifts and showed in her four Super Netball appearances last season, she is ready to shine in the toughest league in the world.

Grace Whyte (Swifts)

The Swifts’ 11th player in 2025, Whyte slotted into the TGC side seamlessly over the weekend, taking to her midcourt role like a seasoned pro. With co-captain Maddy Proud (pregnant) out this season and her replacement on the full-time list Verity Simmons missing the opening day of the pre-season competition with illness, Whyte stepped up to play a crucial midcourt role and didn’t skip a beat. In four games over the weekend, playing mainly at wing attack and directing goalers including internationals Helen Housby and Grace Nweke, the 19-year-old finished with 23 goal assists and 34 feeds in an impressive showing that will give coach Briony Akle enormous confidence to inject her into the Super Netball season proper if needed.

Jessie Grenvold (Mavericks)

The Mavs training partner put her hand up for a possible Super Netball cameo with a series of strong showings over the weekend in the continued absence of Lauren Parkinson (nee Moore). The defender played 77 minutes across four games at the weekend, with her contributions in the circle impressing commentators. With Parkinson still recovering from an ACL injury suffered at last year’s TGC and no guarantee to be ready for round 1, and temporary replacement player Kristiana Manu’a last week severing ties with the Mavs to join Sunshine Coast Lightning this season, an opportunity could open for Grevold early in the year and she showed she’ll be ready to put her hand up.

Nyah Allen of the Mavericks. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Nyah Allen (Mavericks)

A former Collingwood and Adelaide training partner and member of the Magpies’ full-time contract list in 2023, Allen has gained an opportunity with the Mavericks this season. While the club’s shooting depth - they already boast international Eleanor Cardwell, Sasha Glasgow and Shimona Jok, as well as Uneeq Palavi in their training list - will make it difficult to get Super Netball time, Allen showed across the weekend she’s got the ability to contribute at the highest level. One to watch in Super Netball reserves, where she’s likely to see plenty of action this year.

Maggie Caris (Vixens)

With goalkeeper Emily Mannix still on maternity leave after the birth of daughter Mabel in January, and whether or when she will return to duty this season still unknown, Caris is likely to gain significant court time as a temporary replacement player this season. At 190cm, the 22-year-old is almost a straight swap for Mannix and had plenty of time in the circle at the weekend, rotating with new Diamond Rudi Ellis. While Diamonds coach Simone McKinnis is known for keeping her starting seven on court for long stints of the game, Caris could see significant minutes this season, especially if Jo Weston continues to be plagued by injury niggles.

Lily Graham of the Vixens. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Lily Graham (Vixens)

Named as a permanent replacement player for Mwai Kumwenda last year while the Malawi international enjoyed maternity leave, Graham is a member of the Vixens’ 10 again this season and while Diamonds shooters Sophie Garbin and Kiera Austin will command most court time, the teen is likely to add to her tally of Super Netball caps, Showed her versatility over the weekend, playing at both goal shooter and goal attack in combination with both Austin and Garbin, an experience that will aid the Australian 21U squad member as she bids for a place in the team for this year’s World Youth Cup.

Erin O’Brien (Giants)

The rangy defender continued her impressive pre-season form at the TGC, putting in several full-game shifts in the GK bib and forming and impressive combination with Jodi-Ann Ward, earning nine gains, including five rebounds, from three matches. With an injury cloud currently over Tilly McDonell, and O’Brien flying, it’s likely the 189cm defender could earn a place in the starting seven for round 1. With canny Jamaican goal defence Ward just 178cm, the Giants had one of the shortest defensive combinations in the league last year and with the addition of towering shooters Grace Nweke (193cm) and Mary Cholhok (201cm) to the league this season, O’Brien’s height is a valuable asset.

Hope White of the Giants. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Hope White (Giants)

It’s been a whirlwind few months for White, the Giants Academy player who was initially handed a training partner position for the 2025 season before former Silver Ferns midcourter Gain Crampton announced her pregnancy, allowing the teen to be called into the full-time squad. Already a member of the Australian 21U squad, the midcourter’s learning curve is set to get even steeper but she showed over the weekend she’s got the potential to make a mark in the world’s best league.

Jada Delaney (Lightning)

Given the depth in the Lightning’s defensive ranks, it’s unlikely training partner Jada Delaney will see any Super Netball action this season. But the Australian 21U squad member showed why she’s regarded as one of the best young defenders in the country over the weekend, getting plenty of time on court with current and former Diamonds squad members Tara Hinchliffe and Ash Ervin. With Diamonds veteran Courtney Bruce also in the squad and loving the role she’s taken on as a mentor to her younger teammates, Delaney is in the best environment to thrive.

Jada Delaney of Sunshine Coast Lightning. Picture: Supplied

Baylee Boyd (Lightning)

Another Lightning training partner who played significant minutes across the TGC in the absence of rising midcourt star Leesa Mi Mi. Like Delaney, Boyd is unlikely to hit the court during the Super Netball season but will play a part in Super Netball reserves where she’ll show off the benefit of sharing a training court with the likes of Diamonds captain and the world’s best wing attack, Liz Watson.

Ashlee Barnett (Firebirds)

The departure of goalkeeper Remi Kamo at the end of last season opened the way for Barnett to be offered a full-time contract and the 22-year-old racked up some impressive stats in three games, finishing with nine gains, including four intercepts. With Diamonds defender Ruby Bakewell-Doran holding down one of the circle defending spots, 22-year-old Barnett is in a battle with young gun Isabelle Shearer for the other. Shearer, who made her own mark at the Team Girls Cup last year ahead of her Super Netball debut, has the upper hand at the moment but Barnett will be out to make her own mark.

Abigail Latu-Meafou (Firebirds)

The Firebirds training partner is practically a veteran at age 27 but showed at the weekend she has the ability to step up and make the big plays alongside a superstar of the game like Mary Cholhok. The goal attack - who made her Super Netball debut with the Firebirds in the competition’s maiden season in 2017 as an injury replacement - is unlikely to be seen in the main league this season but if there’s injury to shooters Tippah Dwan or Emily Moore, coach Kiri Wills could do worse than draft Latu-Meafou into the side.

Originally published as Team Girls Cup: Will your club’s rising star be playing Super Netball in 2025?