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After Collingwood announced their withdrawal from the Super Netball competition, Magpies players released a scathing statement calling for greater transparency and leadership from Netball Australia.

The criticism was rejected by NA boss Kelly Ryan, but Collingwood had cited the financial woes of the sport’s governing body as a key factor in the club’s decision not to continue its netball endeavours.

What looked to be an issue for a single club, raised concerns about if and how it could affect other teams.

But on the eve of the sold-out Sydney derby between the Swifts and the Giants on Sunday, Netball NSW representatives were eager to highlight the prosperity of the sport and deliver a message to fans: netball in NSW isn’t going anywhere.

“We really feel for the netball players and staff who have been caught up in the situation [at Collingwood]. There are no winners,” Netball NSW chief executive Tracey Scott said.

Asked whether either Sydney-based team was at risk of the same fate as Collingwood, Scott didn’t mince her words: “No, Netball NSW owns and operates both Super Netball clubs and our business is set up to support the needs of two elite teams.”

Giants captain Jo Harten playing against the Magpies las year.Credit: Getty Images

Despite Giants Netball having a strategic partnership with their AFL counterpart, the GWS Giants, their Suncorp Super Netball licence is held by Netball NSW.

Since the Giants’ inception in 2017, along with the Super Netball competition, Scott said the club had seen growth in its fan base, and the development of the Sydney derby had contributed to the success of the club and crowd growth.

“That this week is sold out in just the second season that both clubs are playing at Ken Rosewall Arena is a testament to the strength and quality of the competition that’s on offer,” Scott said.

“Some people are paying $90 for a seat at our derbies and regular-season games. There is no other domestic female sports league in Australia that commands that kind of high-end consumer transaction.”

Swifts captain Maddy Proud said the team had no concerns about its place in the competition.Credit: Getty

Swifts general manager Kath Tetley said the club had seen rapid growth since the pandemic.

“The Swifts recently moved to Ken Rosewall Arena due to their ever-growing fan base and in two seasons since moving we have seen our average attendance almost double,” Tetley said. “Currently, we are tracking for a crowd average of 6500 per game.

“Netball has a rich history in the state and the Swifts have been key drivers in that, as well as being the state’s most celebrated female sports team. It is our aim in the coming seasons to have capacity crowds at every Swifts home game at KRA, and when you see what’s been achieved in such a short period of time that’s not aspirational, that’s within our reach.”

Giants captain Jo Harten said players were rattled by the news out of Collingwood, but the Giants have never doubted their future in the competition.

“That’s largely down to the relationship that we have with our CEO at Netball NSW, Tracey Scott,” Harten said. “She pretty much assured us almost instantly of the future of our club, and she’s very transparent with us as a playing group.

“Tracy was very aware of the kind of speculation and the worry that might have been there from the players, but we were pretty much assured straight away that the future of our club is really strong, and that is largely down to the fact that Netball NSW had plans in place from the word go.”

The same was true for Swifts captain Maddy Proud, who said the team had no concerns about its place in the competition.

“We have a really good relationship with our member organisation,” she said. “We have so much trust and faith in them, and they’re really transparent and open with letting us know where we sit in terms of wanting to keep our team around. We’ve always been reassured that the plan is to keep the team, and that’s all that we’re focussed on.”

The Swifts head into Sunday’s derby second on the ladder and with the finals series in sight. The Giants have had a mixed season and sit sixth on the ladder with just four wins.

But regardless of ladder position, the derby games are always close, and on Sunday almost 10,000 fans will pack into KRA which, whatever the result, is a win for netball in NSW.

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