Silver Ferns captain leaving Pulse

Silver Ferns captain Amerliaranne Ekenasio is leaving the Pulse.

Ekenasio missed the entire ANZ premiership season firstly taking a break and then announcing she was pregnant with her second child.

Today the Pulse have announced that new Silver Fern and former Pulse shooter Tiana Metuarau is returning to the franchise having spent the season with the Southern Steel.

Ekenasio has been with the Pulse since 2015.

Returning Central Pulse netball coach Yvette McCausland-Durie said they did what they could to keep Ekenasio.

McCausland-Durie said they offered Ekenasio a contract for next year, but she opted to go in a different direction.

Metuarau, 20, joined the Pulse in 2017 as a 16-year old but moved to the Southern Steel this season in a bid to get more court time.

Her game has developed and she was recently called into the Silver Ferns squad for the upcoming Constellation Cup series against Australia.

The Pulse have also re-signed Aliyah Dunn who's been with the franchise since 2018 and will return for a fifth season.

"We have seen this combination perform well in the past and remember fondly what they were like when they were a lot younger, they've both matured and we look forward to further growth,'' Netball Central's high performance director Wai Taumaunu said of the pair.

Metuarau's also Taumaunu's daughter.

"It was a tough decision for Tiana and one she wasn't expecting but study and family were a part of it. There was always the expectation that she would be back at some stage. She has made the decision on her own, and believes it is the right one for her.''

The shooting duo first joined forces when they were team-mates in the 2017 World Youth Cup winning NZU21 team.

McCausland-Durie said the 2022 season shaped as "deja vu of 2017 when Ameliaranne was out with pregnancy and Tiana came in and we went on to reach the Grand Final.''

The Pulse finished fifth in the competition this year.

-RNZ