One of the reasons I haven’t written about Suncorp SuperNetball so far this season, is because every time I’ve gone to write a blog something else has blown up to add to the drama mix!
I wanted to write about my dismay about the Super shot and then Lisa Alexander was no longer Diamonds Coach, I went to write about how excited I was about Nat Medhurst’s return to netball, if her partner could get permission to go into the Queensland Hub (she’d not long had a baby) and the next thing I know she’s retired! I wanted to express my frustration that CBass wasn’t being played, I blinked and the Australian Diamonds Captain had signed for a New Zealand team!
One thing is definitely for sure, there was no shortage of talking points in SSN this year and we’re not quite at the end yet! But, with the a Grand Final of Vixens v West Coast Fever on the horizon I figured now was as good a time as any to try, at least, to talk all things Suncorp!
Let’s start with the utterly amazing (and frankly terrifying if your not Aussie!) young talent that has emerged from the league this year. From Georgie Horjus to Sunday Aryang there is some seriously talented young athletes who have stepped up to the plate. I don’t remember a season where so many talented youngsters have caught the eye.
As a ‘Pom’ with a love of all things 🏴🌹 it’s a worry!
Let’s just take a minute to consider why there is such an influx of young talent during this, let’s face it, very strange year. I have an inkling that the ever changing circumstances and the final decision to have squads of 12, as well as the seemingly never ending dramas of rule changes - particularly rolling subs, definitely had a part to play.
To me it seems absurd, at the back end of the season, that we may not have seen Georgie Horjus at all, if we’d just had 10 per squad. We’ll never know if she’d have had a shot, so to speak, but there is a chance she wouldn’t.
Surely it’s something, along with a great deal of many other things, that needs to be on the table for discussion at whatever ‘end of season’ debriefing Netball Australia & partners have. Just a suggestion for the Aussie NGB though, you may want to include some of the players in that conversation this time!
Which brings me neatly to the Supershot. The competition’s ‘plaster’ for something that, in my opinion, is not broken. There is nothing to fix.
I do pride myself on seeing all sides of every story though - I can see beautifully from my mountain top but things can be a bit blurry from others! I will always try to have a look, no matter how high!
4 rounds in and to be honest I’d just about had enough. I was literally ‘tuning out’ of the last 5 minutes of every quarter. It wasn’t exactly ‘edge of the circle, edge of the seat’ stuff I’m afraid. Now we are at the back end of the season, I fail to remember any games Supershot had an impact on, without looking it up!
Supershot has not exactly set the netball world alight.
That’s not to say it hasn’t been spoken about, in depth, by commentators, pundits, coaches, players, fans alike. Many, many column inches have been dedicated to the debate.
If that’s what Netball Australia wanted: they have succeeded in spades!
Supershot. It’s a no from me!
As much as I LOVE my netballlive app, I will reconsider purchasing it next season if they continue with the 2 point charade.
For me, the real ‘stars of the show’ this SSN season has been the commentary team. Sue Gaudion, Liz Ellis & Cath Cox, in particular, have been outstanding. The knowledge, insight & entertainment value of these three, alone, is unrivalled across any sport.
Bear in mind my dismay at the irrelevance and frankly boredom on the Supershot, I actually found myself watching games for these three legends of netball! I’m not sure there is a better compliment for a sports commentator?
And so we come to, what for me, is the biggest talking point of SSN this year. Rightly or wrongly. The drama surrounding Diamonds Captain Caitlyn ‘CBass’ Bassett.
It has played out in a way that we only see in netball, frankly. A similar situation in football, for example, would see tabloid headlines, ‘sources’ offering salacious ‘fake news’ and gossip mongering fodder!
In brief, if you don’t know. CBass has largely been on the subs bench for the Giants this season, coach Julie Fitzgerald preferring the moving circle option of English Rose Jo Harten & rookie Kiera Austin. With her Diamonds place at stake and no other SSN options available Bassett has take the unprecedented step of moving to the New Zealand league for 2021.
To her absolute credit, in what is an extraordinary, stressful situation, CBass has remained dignified, professional and set an example throughout. What a way to conduct herself and what an incredible example to others, including influential junior players.
All parties have ‘had their say’ post move, which has offered an extraordinary insight into SSN transfers, ‘critical conversations’ and different points of view.
CBass’ interview on netball podcast ‘Inner Circle’ is definitely worth a listen if you fancy a really classy and intriguing insight into professional netball - elite sport is definitely not for the feint hearted and can be brutal, even for the most successful.
To tell her truth without a hint of malice or bad feeling, in such a way: what an incredible ambassador for netball & women’s sport.
With hindsight, it was a bit unrealistic of me to write a blog that people would want to read from start to finish on the whole SSN season!
I’m wrapping up without mentioning the indigenous round and the controversy around Jemma MiMi, SSN’s only indigenous player, not getting any court time. I’ve not mentioned Wright and Jencke leaving their franchises or passed comment on their potential successors and I haven’t had the chance to pile the superlatives on those players retiring such as Caitlyn Thwaites and Teigan Phillip.
I’ve purposely ignored the gross ‘spitting’ saga that has no place in society, let alone netball. My heart does goes out to Verity Charles of West Coast Fever, who was on the receiving end of such disgusting behaviour. Despicable.
One thing is for sure there was certainly a lot of action both on and off the court during SSN 2020! It’s worth making the point (my last of this blog!) how extraordinary it is that the season went ahead at all amidst a global pandemic! The work behind the scenes would have been immense and the sacrifices players, coaches, support staff, media partners etc etc made is nothing short of jaw dropping.
So, whether Supershot is your bag or not, whether you agree with me that Sue Gaudion is a commentary genius or Pitman had her best season despite being ‘let go’ by Thunderbirds, we all need to take a moment to count our lucky stars we enjoyed Suncorp SuperNetball, this year, at all.
Heartfelt thanks to all who contributed to making it possible!
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