2020 Suncorp Super Netball season

The 2020 Suncorp Super Netball season will be the fourth season of the premier netball league in Australia. The season was originally scheduled to begin on 2 May, though this was delayed to 1 August due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1][2][3] The defending premiers are the New South Wales Swifts.[4]

2020 Suncorp Super Netball season
LeagueSuncorp Super Netball
SportNetball
Duration1 August – TBC
Number of teams8
TV partner(s)Nine Network
Regular season
Finals

Overview

Teams

Team Captain/s (subject to change) Coach Home Courts Ref.
Adelaide Thunderbirds Chelsea Pitman &
Layla Guscoth
Tania Obst Priceline Stadium
Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Collingwood Magpies Madison Browne &
Geva Mentor
Rob Wright Melbourne Arena
State Netball and Hockey Centre
Silverdome
Giants Netball Jo Harten Julie Fitzgerald Ken Rosewall Arena
AIS Arena
Melbourne Vixens Kate Moloney Simone McKinnis Melbourne Arena
Margaret Court Arena
New South Wales Swifts Maddy Proud Briony Akle Ken Rosewall Arena
Queensland Firebirds Gabi Simpson Roselee Jenke Nissan Arena
Sunshine Coast Lightning Laura Langman Kylee Byrne University of Sunshine Coast Stadium
West Coast Fever Courtney Bruce Stacey Marinkovich RAC Arena

Format

The season is played over fourteen rounds, allowing every team to play each other twice, once at home and once away. The top four teams on the ladder at the conclusion of the regular season qualify for the finals series. In the first week of the finals series, the 1st ranked team hosts the 2nd ranked team in the major semi-final (with the winner of that match to qualify for the Grand Final) and the 3rd ranked team hosts the 4th ranked team in the minor semi-final (with the loser of that match eliminated). The loser of the major semi-final then hosts the winner of the minor semi-final in the preliminary final. The winner of the major semi-final then hosts the winner of the preliminary final in the Grand Final.

Rule changes

The Super Netball commission announced changes to the league structure in February. Rolling substitutions during play will be permitted, as well as during stoppages and intervals, with no limit to the number of substitutions that can be made, and multiple substitutions allowed to be made at any one time. The substitute must tag hands with the player leaving the court before entering the field of play. Extra time in the event of draws will be introduced, after six matches were tied throughout the previous season. The match will enter one 5-minute period of extra time. If at the end of this period teams remain tied, the match will be declared a draw. If a team has a one-goal or greater advantage at the end of the period, they will be declared the winner. The bonus point system in place for the past two seasons will remain, though no bonus points will be awarded for goals scored in extra time.[5][6]

Two-goal super shots

After confirming the return of the league on 1 August, competition administrators announced the introduction of the two-point shot rule alteration. The new rule allows a score of two goals to be awarded to any shooter or attacker who scores in the two-goal zone outside the usual goal circle. The move was met with disapproval from many fans and players, though Super Netball CEO Chris Symington argued "the time is right to introduce an innovation that will make the game even more dynamic and unpredictable".[7] The two-goal shot zone will only be activated in the final five minutes of each quarter and in the five-minute extra time period.[8]

Player transfers

The league unveiled the list of non-contracted athletes on 14 August 2019, two weeks before that season's finals series were scheduled to commence.[9] Teams had the exclusive right to re-sign any of their existing contracted players, their permanent/temporary replacement players or training partners, on single year or multi-year contracts for the 2020 and 2021 seasons. Contracts with players from other teams and leagues could not be announced until the signing period commenced on 16 September 2019. This period closed on 14 October 2019, upon which teams were required to have submitted their 10 senior-listed players for the 2020 season. Training partners could be signed by clubs at any time.[9]

Signings

The following table is a list of players who moved clubs/leagues into Super Netball, or were elevated into a permanent position in the senior team, during the off-season. It does not include players who were re-signed by their original Super Netball clubs.

Name Moving from Moving to Ref
Maddie Hay Giants Netball (ANL; training partner) Giants Netball [10]
Molly Jovic Tasmanian Magpies (ANL) Collingwood Magpies [11]
Melissa Bragg Tasmanian Magpies (ANL; training partner) Collingwood Magpies [12]
Ine-Mari Venter Melbourne Vixens Queensland Firebirds [13]
Rudi Ellis Victorian Fury (ANL) Queensland Firebirds [13]
Macy Gardner Queensland Fusion (ANL; training partner) Queensland Firebirds [13]
Jodi-Ann Ward Severn Stars Collingwood Magpies [14]
Kate Eddy New South Wales Swifts Melbourne Vixens [15]
Lara Dunkley Melbourne Vixens Queensland Firebirds [16]
Kayla Johnson Northern Stars New South Wales Swifts [17]
Maisie Nankivell Southern Force (ANL) Adelaide Thunderbirds [18]
Lenize Potgieter Southern Steel Adelaide Thunderbirds [18]

† Indicates player was signed as an injury-replacement player

Pre-season

Bushfire Relief Match

In January 2020, Netball Australia announced an All-Stars match for the pre-season featuring the Australian Diamonds and the best players from the Super Netball league. The match was played as a fundraiser for relief efforts for the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season, which had been particularly devastating.[19] The teams were announced on 29 January 2020.[20]

1 March 2020
1:00 pm
Report  Australia6356 All-Stars    Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney

Team Girls Cup

The league’s pre-season tournament, known as the Suncorp Team Girls Cup, was set to return for the second time. The tournament would have taken place between 27 and 29 March at the refurbished Ken Rosewall Arena.[21]

However, on 13 March 2020, the league announced that the event would be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[22]

Regular season

  • The season is currently suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season will not commence before June 2020

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Round 6

Round 7

Round 8

Round 9

Round 10

Round 11

Round 12

Round 13

Round 14

Ladder

Pos Team P W D L GF GA % BP PTS
1 Adelaide Thunderbirds000000000.0000
2 Collingwood Magpies000000000.0000
3 Giants Netball000000000.0000
4 Melbourne Vixens000000000.0000
5 New South Wales Swifts000000000.0000
6 Queensland Firebirds000000000.0000
7 Sunshine Coast Lightning000000000.0000
8 West Coast Fever000000000.0000
Last updated: 1 January 2020 — Source

Finals series

Major semi-final

Fri 14 Aug
TBC
FirstvSecond    TBC Nine

Minor semi-final

Sun 16 Aug
TBC
ThirdvFourth    TBC Nine

Preliminary final

Sun 23 Aug
TBC
Loser Major SFvWinner Minor SF    TBC Nine

Grand Final

Sun 30 Aug
TBC
Winner Major SFvWinner PF    TBC Nine

References

  1. "2020 Suncorp Super Netball fixture released". Super Netball. 14 November 2019.
  2. "Suncorp Super Netball 2020 Season on Hold". Super Netball. 23 March 2020.
  3. "Super Netball to start on August 1, with plans for full 60-game season fixture". Wide World of Sports. 2 June 2020.
  4. "Swifts thrash Lightning in Super Netball grand final". The Guardian. 15 September 2019.
  5. "Suncorp Super Netball Rule Changes". Super Netball. 7 February 2020.
  6. "Harten backs extra time in Super Netball". Bendigo Advertiser. 6 February 2020.
  7. "Super Netball introduces game-changing but controversial shooting rule". The Guardian. 22 June 2020.
  8. "'Netball is dead': Aussie fans fume over 'craziest, dumb decision'". Yahoo Sport. 22 June 2020.
  9. "Suncorp Super Netball Releases List Of Uncontracted Players". Super Netball. 14 August 2019. Archived from the original on 15 August 2019.
  10. "Maddy Hay signs for 2020". Giants Netball. 6 September 2019.
  11. "Two more for Browne and Jovic gets the call-up". Collingwood Magpies Netball. 12 September 2019.
  12. "Bragg Earns Full-time Magpies Spot For 2020". Super Netball. 24 September 2019.
  13. "Firebirds Release 2020 Playing Roster". Super Netball. 30 September 2019.
  14. "Ward a Magpie". Collingwood Magpies Netball. 2 October 2019.
  15. "Vixens lock in Kate Eddy for 2020". Melbourne Vixens. 4 October 2019.
  16. "Lara Dunkley A Firebird Now". Super Netball. 14 October 2019.
  17. "Silver Fern Kayla Cullen Commits to Swifts for 2020 Season". Super Netball. 14 October 2019.
  18. "Lenize Potgieter Signing Headlines Thunderbirds 2020 Team List". Super Netball. 15 October 2019.
  19. "Diamonds and Super Netball unite for bushfire relief". Netball Australia. 14 January 2020.
  20. "Netball Bushfire Relief Match Teams Unveiled". Super Netball. 29 January 2020.
  21. "Suncorp Team Girls Cup Fixture Released". Super Netball. 5 February 2020.
  22. "VIS Sport: Updates on the events cancelled/postponed". Victorian Institute of Sport. 16 March 2020.
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