Super Netball players remain shut out of the boardroom with no say on the big decisions regarding Australia's elite domestic competition, as the sport faces financial collapse. They say now is the time to take their deserved seat at the table after a series of controversial moves from the sport's governing body.
confirming the decision was financially motivated, divulging the dire situation the sport had found itself in during the pandemic, owing close to $4 million in debt and reporting a $7.2 million loss in revenue the past two years.
"It shows the board have zero idea or understanding of what motivates these players and the meaning associated with playing a game like this and potentially winning it in front of their home crowd." Medhurst's concerns would likely not be put to rest after NA signed a new ongoing broadcast deal with Fox Sports for this season that will only generate $7 million for netball per year when it actually costs $8 million per year to run the Super Netball competition.The findings of the independent State of the Game review, released in December 2020 and led by Australian legend Liz Ellis, suggested the sport needed to change its governance structure.
"We completely understand the commercial aspect of the game and that other stakeholders need to be taken into consideration, but we have been left out of a lot of key decisions, including the recent grand final one, as well as others like the super shot, bonus points and more.
To make matters worse, the players were told it was going to happen three months after they had agreed to take a 70 per cent pay cut in order to keep the sport running. Finding out the news a day or so before it was announced to the public."The frustration for the players has been that, historically, we've always been incredibly cooperative with NA and have consistently acted in the best interests of the sport," McAuliffe said.
With players about to head into Super Netball finals and the Diamonds off to Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games not long after that, they say their focus will be diverted in the coming months and that it will be hard for them to keep pushing their message.
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