Nissan Net Points Team of the Year

By Stephanie Smarrelli 

The 2023 Suncorp Super Netball season was one of the best in recent memory, full of nail-biting finishes, thrilling storylines and brilliant individual efforts. 

But over the course of the 14 home and away rounds, a set of SSN stars stood out above the rest, consistently producing an incredibly high level of performance – week in, week out.  

Their dominance is highlighted by a metric called Nissan Net Points. 

The Nissan Net Points system awards players points throughout each match for positive contributions such as scoring a goal, feeding the ball or taking an intercept.  On the flipside it also removes points from a player's score for turnovers and penalties. The full list of how much every stat is worth can be found here.

This flows nicely into how the Nissan Net Point Team of the Year is determined. 

The team is picked based on the athletes who have the highest average Nissan Net Point score in the league across their position throughout the home-and-away season. This means finals don’t count towards the Nissan Net Points Team of the Year and that the top 10 Nissan Net Point accumulators don’t always make the side – unless we want to operate with three goal shooters, three centres and four wing attacks! 

So now that you're refreshed on the whole process here's the list of 2023's best. 

GS: Jhaniele Fowler  

It will surprise no one that Jhaniele Fowler tops the list of goal shooters when it comes to Nissan Net Points. In fact, the only way her selection in the side would surprise anyone would be if they picked her in goal defence.  

Averaging 94.9 Nissan Net Points throughout the season the Jamaican powerhouse stole the show in goal shooter. 

With the strength and confidence to pull any ball in, turn and shoot whether it was against the Melbourne Vixens in Round 1 or the NSW Swifts in the midst of finals Fowler proved her worth time and time again. 

In Round 7 of the 2023 season, Fowler was unstoppable against the Sunshine Coast Lightning scoring 65 goals at 100 per cent accuracy, with her work in the goal circle earning her a massive 149.5 Nissan Net Points in her team’s win. 

GA: Helen Housby  
 
There’s only a handful of goal attacks you would trust with the ball when it’s clutch time.  

Three seconds from victory, Helen Housby is the woman for the job. 

The England stars’ ability to tune out the chaos and quickly focus on the task at hand is next to none. 

Tallying an average of 87.8 Nissan Net Points during the season, Housby's work under the post and during the phases beforehand to set up her teammates make her one of the best in the business. 

Her best performance in 2023 came against West Coast Fever in Round 9 with the attacker finishing the match on 122.5 Nissan Net Points. 

She slotted a staggering 10 Suncorp Super Shots throughout the match with an overall accuracy of 82 per cent, showcasing why she’s one of the world’s best. 

WA: Alice Teague-Neeld  

She may not be the first name you think of when asked to name the world’s best wing attack but there’s no doubt that she’s among them and continuing to push her case for higher honours year on year. 

The former goal attack continued to refine her craft in the wing attack bib this season averaging an impressive 85.5 Nissan Net Points a game to secure a spot in the 2023 Nissan Net Points Team of the Year. 

Teague-Neeld’s best outing was against the side she debuted for back in 2014, the Vixens. 

Disciplined with the ball, the Fever wing attack fed 42 times without her pass being intercepted by the opposition and she only had one turnover in what was a high-pressure match, utilising her strong connection with Jhaniele Fowler. 

C: Jamie-Lee Price  
 
While the GIANTS struggled to find their form throughout 2023, Jamie-Lee Price was a shining light. 

The midcourter went from strength-to-strength with her defensive pressure suffocating teams into coughing up possession.  

Her speed, agility and natural defensive prowess enabled the 27-year-old to average 92.6 Nissan Net Points each time she stepped onto the court. 

Price tallied up 120 Nissan Net Points, the most of her season against Collingwood in Round 9. 

With 33 feeds, two gains and one intercept to her name Price dominated the midcourt, challenging the Magpies to find a way to stop her.  

And in case you were wondering – they didn’t. 

WD: Latanya Wilson  
 
Thunderbirds defender Latanya Wilson was a force to be reckoned with in 2023. 

Obliterating the competition across the defensive third she slots into the wing defence position for the Nissan Net Points Team of the Year. 

The defender averaged 51.5 Nissan Net Points in 2023, and whilst that seems insignificant compared to her teammates, it’s important to remember that the wing defence position is not well supported by the Nissan Net Point system. 

In Round 11 two of the best teams in the league, the Fever and the Thunderbirds were vying for the win, with the Thunderbirds fired up off a massive loss to the Vixens the week prior. 

Wilson stepped up to the challenge with 74.5 Nissan Net Points, shutting down Fever’s Alice Teague-Neeld while coming up with three gains and two intercepts. 

Wilson’s natural flair and willingness to go for any ball makes her one of the most watchable players in the competition – and a fan favourite. 

GD: Jodi-Ann Ward  

It was a tough year for the Collingwood Magpies, but Jodi-Ann Ward kept fans up and about, fighting tooth and nail for possession every week. 

The Magpies defender managed to flourish on the court despite her side riding the ups and downs of an emotional season. 

Averaging 62.4 Nissan Net Points, the goal defence was impressive throughout 2023. 

Ward sprang into action from the get-go with her performance in Round 1 leading to her season high Nissan Net Points match tally with 125.5. 

Her defensive pressure and unit work with teammate Geva Mentor throttled the Swifts. Ward was everywhere, finishing the match on nine gains and four intercepts as the Magpies stunned the competition and rolled the eventual runners-up with ease. 

GK: Shamera Sterling  

No one does it quite like Sterling. 

Stepping up in the big moments and the small ones, Thunderbird Shamera Sterling rounds out the list filling the goal keeper bib. 

Averaging 93.8 Nissan Net Points throughout the season, the Sunshine Girls superstar has become a juggernaut of the game, whether she is pulling off premiership winning intercepts or producing tight one-on-one work that gives shooters nightmares, Sterling gets the job done. 

She started the season on a high note, with her best Nissan Net Point performance in Round 1.  
 
Up against the Queensland Firebirds, Sterling took 11 gains and five intercepts while keeping her penalties low to tally a haul of 158.5 Nissan Net Points in the one match, setting the tone for what would become a history making season for the Thunderbirds.