2021 Finish – 6 wins 8 losses (6th)
2022 Leadership group – Geva Mentor and Ash Brazill (Co-captains)
Key to 2022
An up-and-down 2021 meant, for a second straight season, the Magpies would be watching the finals from home.
The big takeaway from last year’s 14-matches has to be just how important it is to knock-off the best teams in a league this tight. Essentially, the Magpies were bottom four bullies, and top four pretenders.
The Magpies got the job done in almost all of the matchups they were expected to win, sweeping both the Vixens and Firebirds while splitting their two games with the Thunderbirds. But they were only able to manage one win against the eventual top four sides, beating the Swifts in Round 11.
It’s a hard thing to knock the Pies when you consider that top four was no joke. Nonetheless, it definitely showed where the 2021 Magpies were at.
If the 2022 squad wants a shot at the club’s first premiership, they need to beat the best sides regularly, while also taking care of business when they hit the court as favourites.
Predicted starting 7
GK – Geva Mentor
GD – Jodi-Ann Ward
WD – Ash Brazill
C – Molly Jovic
WA – Kelsey Browne
GA – Sophie Garbin
GS – Shimona Nelson
Not too many holes in this starting seven, should the new faces come in and make a big impact, the veterans keep contributing and promising youngsters continue to produce. Where they might come undone when going up against those top tier sides is their depth, where we have some questions.
Geva Mentor is an ageless wonder coming off yet another strong season at goal keeper. The Magpies co-captain finished the Suncorp Team Girls Cup watching on from the sidelines after copping an ankle injury, but all the talk is she’ll be right for Round 1.
Jodi-Ann Ward completes one of the best defensive circles in the league and really came into her own in 2021. Expect big things again from the 27-year-old Jamaican.
After announcing she would be committing herself entirely to netball in 2022, co-captain Ash Brazill should come into her sixth season as a Magpie ready to rock. She looked awesome at the Quad Series as part of the Diamonds squad, so 2022 could be fun.
Molly Jovic is one of the rising stars of this league and continues to improve every week. Having someone with a seemingly endless tank at the center position is obviously a great thing. Having one with as much skill as Jovic is another thing entirely.
Not much needs to be said about the impact Kelsey Browne has on this team. 2021 was a return to form for Browne, who finished in the top 10 for feeds, goal assists and fifth in centre pass receives.
You don’t sign a player with a ceiling as high Sophie Garbin’s and put her on the bench, so the ex-Swift gets the nod at goal attack for us. Having Garbin start means that Gabi Sinclair can sub in and focus on hitting those Super Shots.
And Shimona Nelson rounds the team out as one of the most promising goal shooters in the comp. All the tools are there for Nelson to become the next Jhaniele Fowler-style dominant holding shooter, she just needs to work on her consistency.
Round-by-round
The Magpies have a really interesting fixture to navigate that we think is overall a pretty tough one.
Five of their first seven matches are on the road and their home game heavy back half of the season sees the Pies play just one game at John Cain Arena.
They have the honour of opening the entire 2022 season in Adelaide before heading home to face the Fever in Round two. Things get pretty tricky from here.
Their three-games-in-six-days run starts at Ken Rosewall Arena against the Swifts then it’s back home for a Wednesday night match against the Lightning before jumping on another plane to Sydney to take on the GIANTS in Round 5.
That game against the GIANTS kicks-off a four game road trip where they’ll take on the Firebirds, the Vixens (as the away team in Melbourne) and the West Coast Fever. Tough run.
It sets up an unusual four game run where they play four home games at four different stadiums.
They’ll host the Firebirds in Hobart, the GIANTS in Launceston on Wednesday night, the Thunderbirds four days later at the State Netball Centre and the Swifts at John Cain Arena.
A trip to the Sunshine Coast and a huge Melbourne Derby close out a pretty dense schedule.
The Magpies are actually undefeated in their four matches they’ve played down in Tasmania, so they certainly have a great track record when crossing the Bass Strait. But do they really have that same home game feel?
In the end, getting through a tough opening half then coming home strong with that four game home stand will determine whether the Magpies can crack that top four.
Prediction – 7th
While the starting seven is strong, there are plenty of question marks with the Magpies’ depth. Jacqui Newton looked good at the Suncorp Teams Girls Cup, Maggie Lind looked a little off the pace and Gabi Sinclair might function as more of a situational shooter than full-time contributor in 2022.
Combine this with a schedule that sees them play ten matches away from their home court at John Cain Arena and we think the Magpies might struggle to string enough wins together to play finals.
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