Australia Locks In as the Premier Destination for Netball
A quick report about the good and bad of no international player restrictions in the new Australian Netball League
Netball Australia is moving fast to get their league ready to go before it explodes onto the market with its first game early next year. The moves and rumours surrounding its establishment are quickly placing it as the top tier competition for the pros to play in, and the announcement today that there will be no import restriction answers one of the bigger questions that was floating around after the new league formed.
But you might still be wondering what it means.
Put simply, the current rules dictate that teams are only allowed one international import player; a rule designed to allow growth of local netball talent as well as allowing smaller market teams a chance at nabbing the best.
So abolishing the import restriction is important for a few reasons: it allows the league to expand its player base by offering bigger salaries, broadcast platforms and fanbases for players to execute their skills in front of, and it also allows the three new expansion clubs an opportunity to gain established talent from other teams or, if not that, the ability to place larger bids on international talent.
A scary example of this restriction lift is something along the likes of the Firebirds luring MVP goal shooter, Jhaniele Fowler-Reid (a Jamaican native), away from the Steel with more money and a bigger market; or we could see rising star goal keeper, Jane Watson, heading to the Swifts for an all-star defensive team up with Sharni Layton.
As exciting as all of that is, the announcement does come with a few caveats. It’s not great for foreign leagues like New Zealand and England who now face a possible exodus from players who want to play in what looks to be the biggest competition netball can put on.
The foreign leagues could also possibly impose restrictions on the players who represent them on a global scale by, say, restricting their eligibility to represent their country in the World Cup. Doing this could force current stars in the ANZ Championship — stars like Romelda Aiken, Laura Langman, and Geva Mentor — to pick whether representing their country is more important or playing for a championship is more important, and, to some, representing their country is the number one personal and professional goal.
Putting aside the grievances from other leagues, though, this is a huge step in the right direction for netball as a growing sport. It’s growing fast and next year could well be an exciting new chapter for netball as a whole. It’s a players choice now when deciding what club to play at, and when you couple that with a heightened interest from new clubs, more money, and larger markets, you’ll find that the new netball league in Australia looks set to be something very special.
Luke and I will be discussing this more in depth in a future episode of The Afterthought’s netball podcast, The Goal Circle. You can subscribe here!
