The “boom crash opera” of the most physical season yet of Super Netball went up an octave at the weekend, with bodies flying and lips splitting in a round which put national coaches preparing for July’s World Cup on edge.
Over two days which saw three score blow-outs and a thrilling draw, the step up in physicality predicted by players and pundits pre-season was on high-definition display – as was the cold, hard reality of this year’s World-Cup enforced split format, which puts Super Netball clubs and national programs at cross-purposes.
The pause in the domestic competition between 23 June and 27 July for international teams to play in the World Cup in England, has raised questions about potential player burnout. Top of Australian minds will be the capacity for the Diamonds to adequately prepare and the impact, before and after the split, on Super Netball, the world’s premier league, which features all contracted Diamonds and 21 international players.
Sunday’s repeat of last year’s grand final between the West Coast Fever and Sunshine Coast Lightning was the first tangible example of the juggling act that will be required.
Fever, who sensationally lost by one to the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the opening round, went into the game with injury clouds over their star bookends, 198cm Jamaican shooter Jhaniele Fowler and Diamonds starting goal keeper Courtney Bruce, who both picked up injuries in the loss.
Bruce fell heavily on her left wrist and after some uncertainty about her condition during the week, coach Stacey Marinkovich revealed she had sustained “trauma to the bone” and bone bruising to her elbow, not wrist. She was ruled out for this week and sat courtside with the injured arm heavily strapped and in a sling.
Fowler, on the other hand, went down with what looked like a nasty ankle tweak in the final quarter last week, but was declared fit and played an almost lone hand in the West Australians’ embarrassing 25-goal loss to Lightning, shooting 51 of her side’s 55 goals. Towards the end of the match though, the Jamaican’s movement looked a little restricted.
Just 10 weeks out from the World Cup, no doubt Diamonds coach Lisa Alexander would have been on the phone to Marinkovich during the week to check on her star’s prognosis. Jamaica head coach Marvette Anderson would also be keeping a close eye on the health of her best player.
While there’s no suggestion either player – or any player – will be risked ahead of the World Cup, the injuries do underscore the complexity of this season’s structure. Just as it’s a franchise coach’s job to win premierships, national coaches have a singular focus – to win world titles.
How players are managed by Super Netball clubs in the lead-up to the World Cup could become a spectator sport all of its own. Will stars with minor injuries be rested before the tournament in Liverpool? Will others put out poor performances post-World Cup? And what of the spectre of serious injury; either before, impacting on a nation’s chances, or at the World Cup itself, devastating their Super Netball side’s chances in finals? It’s a ball of wool that’s starting to slowly unravel.
Also starting to reveal itself in the league is a level of on-court physicality and “matching of strength” rarely seen before. It was something highlighted by Queensland Firebirds captain and Diamonds midcourter Gabi Simpson pre-season, who predicted muscle would take the stage this season.
“It’s not necessarily physicality, but strength,” she said. “The time the athletes put into their athleticism means you can have that strength, but it’s matched. If both players aren’t impacted, then it’s fair game. It’s become a new strategy, that’s how the game is evolving.”
The first game of round two, on Saturday between Collingwood and Simpson’s Firebirds, in front of nearly 5,000 at the new Queensland State Netball Centre, was as bruising an encounter as there has been in three seasons of Super Netball.
After sustaining what can only be described as a reckless elbow from Tara Hinchliffe, Collingwood recruit Nat Medhurst had her upper lip stitched, but returned, and countless others from both sides hit the deck as players “set themselves” basketball-style in the hopes of drawing an offensive contact.
At one stage, three Firebirds players were on a caution and numerous penalties were advanced down the court, a sanction reserved for the most serious indiscretions.
The combined contact count was a staggering 117; 30 more than any other game this round and over a dozen more than any game in round one. The Pies withstood the pressure though and after a nine-goal fightback, managed a 57-57 draw.
In her 200th match, Giants captain Kim Green took a hit to the ribs as she drove to the circle against the Vixens, but moved OK after a short break off the court. Green’s side went down 61-45 in what was a worrying loss for coach Julie Fitzgerald. In the other match of the round, the NSW Swifts easily accounted for the Thunderbirds 61-43.
While the Swifts and the Vixens remain undefeated, it’s the as-yet-unknown effect of the World Cup break which may have the biggest say on the outcome of Super Netball in 2019.
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