Silver Ferns likely to test eligibility rule as players look across the Tasman

The Silver Ferns coach says she has had conversations with players who are interested in playing in the Australian league next year and will support exemption bids.

Under Netball New Zealand policy, players must be signed with an ANZ Premiership team to be eligible for selection in the Silver Ferns.

Players can apply for an exemption but it is usually reserved for veteran Silver Ferns.

When Dame Noeline Taurua was first appointed Silver Ferns' coach, Netball New Zealand granted exemptions to stalwarts Laura Langman and Maria Folau to compete in the 2019 Australian league. Both players had in excess of 100 Test caps each at that time.

It is a rule that has not been tested since then.

RNZ understands Netball New Zealand has approached its trans-Tasman counterparts about securing up to three franchise licences in the Australian league.

But any kind of entry into the Suncorp Super Netball League (SSN) would not happen until 2026 at the very earliest, and 2027 might be more realistic given the current broadcast deal with Fox Sports runs until the end of 2026.

With the World Cup being held in 2027, that left very little time for New Zealand players to get the international exposure Dame Noeline said they needed and there was no guarantee that any talks with Australia would come to fruition.

"I can see the clock ticking and for 2025 if opportunities do present to players [in the SSN] I am very open with them to go through the [exemption] process," Dame Noeline said.

"So I have spoken to players about that, and definitely will support them in that, because I know to get them into SSN is really helpful and valuable for us and the Silver Ferns, knowing that we've only got three years, and if anything the move needs to be made now.

"So I'm really supportive of that and definitely open to work with the board or the CEO, as to how we could possibly do it without hurting [our domestic league] as well.

"For me, it's making sure that I can do the job in 2027 and we have the calibre of athletes that are world class and the only way to do that is by playing the best week in, week out."

Dame Noeline said players would have to go through the Netball NZ board to apply for an exemption and only time would tell if the threshold had softened.

"Through the process that will happen with some of these players, I think that will spit out what the parameters are going to be and what they [the board] are willing to work within. So I don't know that as yet, but I've had those discussions, and I'll just have to wait to see what the decisions are going to be made."

Last year, Netball New Zealand told RNZ it was not planning on changing its eligibility rule.

But when Dame Noeline reapplied for her job earlier this year, she made it clear during the interview process that something had to change and believed Netball NZ was on the same page.

"Increasing international exposure is a necessity for our athletes. And, if anything, the only way to do that is by opening up and seeing what could happen, whether it's New Zealand teams going over to SSN, but would they [Australia] want that, I'm not too sure. Or opening it up and letting our athletes go over there. I'm sure these are the discussions that Netball New Zealand are currently having."

Dame Noeline said in recent years there have been Silver Ferns who had initial discussions with Australian franchises but decided not to proceed because the timing was not right for their personal circumstances at the time.

"But if they feel that they need to go to improve their game ... then I'll definitely support that ... and that has definitely happened and some players will go through that process and I'll see what comes out the other end with the discussions that will be had."

Fast-tracking players

As part of her professional development, the Silver Ferns' coach had a two week stint with Australian Super Netball side, the NSW Swifts, as a specialist in late May.

From 2017, Dame Noeline spent three years as a head coach in the SSN, where she led the Sunshine Coast Lightning to two titles.

She said stepping into the Swifts environment was a reminder of the high standards set in Australia.

"From the professionalism of the club, but also of the athletes as well. So it's what I remember, but probably the intensity for me was consistent, even back in 2019 where they just run and everything is just at a high clip, high level, and then expectation around delivery of whatever that may be is very high."

The Silver Ferns coach said Jamaican players were having a huge impact on the competition.

"They have just come leaps and bounds over the last few years ... you know Australia are doing such a good job in regards to developing the high performance programme of Jamaica and other countries, because the shifts that these athletes have made has been phenomenal, and Jamaican athletes are just next level."

She said New Zealand players needed to be exposed to a higher intensity to address the shifts that have been made by other countries.

The Silver Ferns had their worst result at a World Cup last year when they finished fourth.

Dame Noeline said earlier this year that she only had two world class players when she headed to last year's World Cup and she needed four if the Silver Ferns wanted to win in 2027.

"For us to be able to match that intensity, we've either got to do something amazing within the short time that we have, or there needs to be something that needs to change within our competition or how we view ourselves."

Behind the scenes, the Silver Ferns coach is driving home improvements which could be made at an ANZ Premiership domestic level, but she said that would only go so far to fast-tracking players.

SSN clubs can start re-contracting players from their existing roster but new players cannot be signed until early August when the signing window opens, soon after the grand final on 3 August.

The contracting timeframes are similar in New Zealand with this year's ANZ Premiership grand final being played on 3 or 4 August.