Let the netball ‘silly season’ begin.
The list of uncontracted Super Netball players is out, and with it comes speculation about who might be on the move, who’s holding out for offers and who might miss out on a new deal.
Clubs have already been able to approach players from other teams since July 29, and while some teams are heavily focused on finals, there’s undoubtedly been discussions happening behind the scenes.
Who could your club be looking to target?
Here are some of the key questions surrounding the big names who are yet to put pen to paper.
SARAH KLAU (SWIFTS)
Clubs would be remiss if they hadn’t enquired about the Swifts’ goal keeper’s services. In a breakout season for NSW she’s been the lynchpin in the league’s most frugal defence, has won Diamonds selection and stamped herself as a bona fide star. Her stocks have risen dramatically in the past 12 months, meaning she could rightly expect a bigger piece of the Swifts’ salary cap. But as she’s one of just two Swifts who haven’t inked their deal for next year, is there any wiggle room left?
KARLA PRETORIUS (LIGHTNING)
The world’s best goal defence could all but name her price on a new contract, such has been her dominance yet again this season. While she may wind up back at Lightning, there’s room in the defence end at Queensland rivals the Firebirds after Laura Clemesha’s retirement, while the NSW Swifts are yet to re-sign Sarah Klau or Kate Eddy. In fact, all teams bar West Coast are yet to sign a full defensive end. Could we see Pretorius fly south to one of the Melbourne teams? In AFL circles Collingwood is linked to almost every out of contract player, so with April Brandley yet to sign, is Pretorius a potential ready replacement?
LAURA LANGMAN (LIGHTNING)
Are Laura Langman and Noeline Taurua a package deal? With Taurua at the end of her three-year contract and with the Lightning but yet to reveal whether she’ll coach on at the Sunshine Coast, fans of the Lightning will be waiting to discover whether the two key pillars of the club’s success will return next year. Langman said after the World Cup that she was undecided on her Silver Ferns future, while she’s yet to comment on her plans in Super Netball. Would she stay in Queensland if Taurua pulled up stumps? Other clubs would potentially throw significant offers her way – particularly those craving midcourt experience and depth like the Queensland Firebirds and Adelaide Thunderbirds.
CAITLIN THWAITES/MWAI KUMWENDA/TEGAN PHILIP (VIXENS)
To have the entire Melbourne Vixens goaling end unsigned is something of a shock. Could the future of all three players depend on how the Super Netball finals series plays out? Thwaites was recruited after Mwai Kumwenda’s ACL injury, so time will tell whether the 32-year-old Diamond was purely a stop-gap for the Vixens as they awaited Kumwenda’s return. All three goalers are stars, but in a season in which the Vixens were initially touted as almost unbeatable, things haven’t quite clicked consistently. With Maria Folau the only big-name goaler unsigned, are there ready replacements out there?
AMY PARMENTER (GIANTS)
You’d expect that Parmenter was signed cheaply for her first Super Netball season. But after a breakout year in which she’s marked herself as one of the competition’s best wing defences and a future Diamond, she could command significantly more on the open market for 2020. Could that be the sticking point? The Melbourne Vixens shape as a potential suitor, having lost Renae Ingles to retirement.
KIM RAVAILLION/APRIL BRANDLEY (MAGPIES)
The Magpies are yet to sign Diamonds representatives Kim Ravaillion and April Brandley, which begs the question: after three years in which the competition’s most high-profile team hasn’t quite hit the mark on the court, are there more changes brewing? Ravaillion found herself playing in the unfamiliar wing defence bib in the Magpies’ Round 12 win – something that would never have neen expected when she signed on in 2017. It’s easy to forget Ravaillion is only 26 years old – an age at which some players only just manage to crack their first Super Netball contract. With the Firebirds losing Caitlyn Nevins and lacking top-line midcourters, could coach Roselee Jencke orchestrate a return to where it all began?
MARIA FOLAU (THUNDERBIRDS)
Folau promises to be one of the big stories of the signing period. Her presence in Adelaide has been a huge plus for the Thunderbirds, helping to lift the franchise and develop the young players around her. But the Silver Ferns legend would likely be eating up a significant slice of the Thunderbirds’ salary cap, making it a challenge to bring in and accommodate other players. Whether she wants to stay in Adelaide for a second year remains to be seen, and it’s also unclear whether another franchise could squeeze her in within their budget.
