Netball Victoria is one step closer to retaining two Super Netball franchises as the governing body looks to expand its reach in the state.
Super Netball: Magpies coach Nicole Richardson has revealed the playing group is hurting after the news the club will be disbanded.
While Netball Australia (NA) has not yet released the process for bids – something that will be finalised and made public this week – NV has made a pre-emptive bid to ensure its fans and players in the state know it is working feverishly to replace high performance opportunities set to be lost at the end of the season after Collingwood announced it would not renew its Super Netball licence.
And while the NV-run Melbourne Vixens will continue to play out of Melbourne’s John Cain Arena, a new Victorian side would look to exploit the popularity of the sport throughout the state, playing out of regional centres Bendigo, Ballarat and Geelong in the rundown to the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Netball Victoria will try to retain a second franchise with Collingwood set to depart. (Photo by Jenny Evans/Getty Images)
“I want everyone in the Netball Victoria pathway to know that we’re prepared to fight for netball,” Pearman said.
“And that we do not think that a great outcome is losing that second licence.”
While NA’s broadcast agreement with the Foxtel Group stipulates two teams run out of Victoria and chief executive Kelly Ryan last week confirmed the broadcaster would play a key role in determining the location of the eighth licence, she also said that could change.
“There are definitely contractual commitments around locations but as with any contract and great working partnership, just because it’s on paper doesn’t mean you can’t change the terms of that contract,” Ryan said.
“So we will work very closely with Foxtel and we will collaborate and build a model that we think will work for the sport because if it works for the sport, it works for us and it works for them.”
That could play into the hands of NV’s regional model, although the state body had concerns that NA’s bid process could allow applications from anywhere in the country.
“We actually haven’t seen the RFP (request for proposal) but we’ve been told it’s an Australia-wide process and that’s the thing that concerns me with my Netball Victoria hat on,” Pearman said.
But NV is certainly the frontrunner, with expansion hopefuls Gold Coast and Canberra ruling themselves out as bidders given the quick turnaround, while a stand-alone Netball Geelong venture is also out of the question for 2024.
With the Magpies departing, Netball Victoria may look to expand its reach outside the city. (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)
Netball Tasmania has expressed interest, although CEO Mitch Coulson has acknowledged the difficulties of building a club from scratch in just months.
But Pearman said NV had the experience to do so and given there had been some preliminary planning around a regional Victorian licence for the next broadcast cycle, starting in 2027, some groundwork had been done.
“With netball being the leading team sport for girls and women in the state, we consider it vital that Victoria continues to have two teams in the national competition and we’re working in close partnership with the Victorian Government to achieve that outcome,” Pearman said.
“We are ready to take on an additional SSN (Super Netball) licence and have proven form to set up and build a successful team.”
While the Magpies failed to attract significant support in their seven-year Super Netball tenure, Pearman said NV strongly believed the state could back two teams.
“I think (Collingwood CEO) Craig Kelly’s mentioned that they’ve had their challenges and probably could have done things differently themselves,” she said.
“And for us, it’s really disappointing actually that Collingwood are not in the competition. I think Craig’s a really good operator and I think if he’d had a real chance to get his teeth stuck into it, it would have been a different outcome.
“But if I put my Netball Victoria hat on, what is important is that we have two teams to sustain opportunities for Victorian netballers.
“If I think about where Netball Australia feels, it could contribute to an SSN licence it is in that regional growth strategy.
“We’re not necessarily saying a bad outcome is another Melbourne team, it’s just that (with Collingwood out), we think we have the best Melbourne team now in the Vixens and we wouldn’t want to compromise that in any shape or form by us putting another Melbourne licence in.
“For us as an organisation, that regional strategy is a really good opportunity. We were starting to think about it anyway for the next licence period, but it’s just popped up much more quickly than anyone would have thought.”
While Netball Geelong had concerns around a suitable stadium, Pearman believes legacy infrastructure for the 2026 Commonwealth Games will provide a suitable venue there, with Bendigo – which will host netball at those games – and Ballarat already having venues in place for a 2024 start.
Netball Australia is making no promises to any bidder at this stage though.
“Netball Australia welcomes all interest regarding an eighth licence for the 2024-2026 Suncorp Super Netball seasons,” a statement from the parent body said.
NA needs to lock in an eighth franchise quickly to ensure they meet the broadcast requirements for the remaining three years of the current broadcast cycle while giving players due to come off contract in just four months some clarity on the future of the competition.
Collingwood players are also desperate for information on the way forward given they will essentially be in limbo in just three weeks’ time, with no team and no Collective Player Agreement for next season’s contracting in place.