Battlers, rebuilders and underperformers: The three Super Netball coaches set to feel the heat
Super Netball 2026: Three coaches under most pressure, Belinda Reynolds, Kiri Wills, rookie Nerida Stewart , Pivot analysis, player contracts , signing period Super Netball is being dominated by the Di Honey’s Vixens and Tania Obst’s Thunderbirds , while Gerard Murphy ’s Mavericks are threatening a first finals appearance .
Dan Ryan’s Fever and Briony Akle’s Swifts have copped major personnel setbacks, mitigating whatever their fate proves to be. Around them, three coaches are feeling the heat — and FOX Netball’s Pivot put the microscope on each. Join now and get your first month for just $1. The Giants are winless in their first season under Nerida Stewart, who was promoted to head coach after serving as an assistant to Julie Fitzgerald.
They have met expectations that they were likely wooden spooners, though the extent of their malaise is alarming. That has not been all Stewart’s fault, but it’s always easier to change the coach than a stack of players at an underperforming club. Dual premiership winner Emily Beaton was blunt when asked if she believed Stewart had the players to win a game this season.
Pivot“One of the big players she lost is arguably the No.1 player in the competition in Jamie-Lee Price, and then the players that she’s filled with probably haven’t stood up as much as they would have hoped.
“I actually think perhaps it’s not a Nerida problem, it’s a list problem. Everybody’s coming off contract at the end of this season; where are they going to recruit from? They need some big players who are proven to stand up in this competition.
“They haven’t had Jane Watson for the last few weeks. In the goaling circle they recruited Lucy Austin, she’s been injured but she also didn’t perform how they would have hoped as well.
“A lot of things look the same as they had before when they weren’t a successful side, so really tough ask for Nerida Stewart. But isn’t there so much opportunity for them as well.
“What’s really interesting is that we have seen that they can put out the goods, and interestingly it has been against the Thunderbirds and Vixens, the two best teams in the competition. So why can’t they do that every single week? How does she get the best out of them and why are they rising to the occasion against those big teams? ”“I think she deserves one.
I think you learn so much in year one, coming into this environment. She’s been there as an assistant but gosh it’s different when all the weight is on your shoulders. You have to learn how to get the best out of your players and how to really push them to succeed week in, week out, not drop their heads.
“But again, give her the opportunity with a strong list to be able to perform and then make the call. I think it’d be pretty tough to give her one season and that’s it. ”Sunshine Coast are into their third season with Diamonds superstars Liz Watson and Courtney Bruce, a recruitment coup which escalated with the signing of New Zealand captain Karin Burger for this year.
But so far, they have nothing to show for it and this season seems headed the same way despite a massive weekend upset.
“We know the Lightning did get a big win against the Vixens in this round, however with the list that they have, they are continuing to really probably not match the performance we were expecting from them this season,” Diamonds great Bianca Chatfield said. At 4-6, the Lightning are fifth on the ladder. They are an astonishing five wins behind the Vixens and Thunderbirds, while far less hyped teams in the Fever and Mavericks could beat them to finals spots.
“This conversation probably would have been a little different had they not knocked the Vixens off,” Beaton said. “But I think they have had the talent for years. They’ve got the Silver Ferns captain, they’ve got the Diamonds captain, they’ve got Courtney Bruce there, Donnell Wallam, Cara Koenen. They have got superstars all over the court, yet they cannot perform consistently.
We don’t know what we’re going to get from them week to week. They often fade out of games.
“Is that where a coach isn’t getting the most out of her players? When you do have big, strong personalities or perhaps leaders in there, how much weight does the coach have? I’m not sure.
“But I think she would expect more from herself. I think the Sunshine Coast Lightning would probably expect more from the list that they have had for years. I think we would all agree that they have underperformed. ” Statistics show Reynolds has taken the Lightning to just one finals appearance in her three years in charge.
KIRI WILLS – FIREBIRDS The only way was up for the Firebirds after a wooden spoon last season and they delivered a stunning statement of intent by signing Silver Ferns Kelly Jackson, Maddy Gordon and Te Paea Selby-Rickit. Coach Kiri Wills, in her second season, has led Queensland to three wins. There’s been clear improvement but they still don’t look like serious finals contenders.
“History would show that it hasn’t. They’re still hovering down the bottom of the ladder, as they have for years and years now,” she said.
“They had some great recruits; I think Kelly Jackson’s been a brilliant one and she’s really stood up down there. The personnel around probably hasn’t. Maddy Gordon was out for a lot of games through the middle there. ” Then, there’s the ongoing goal shooter headache.
Wills has persisted with Mary Cholhok, despite the giant Ugandan GS never convincingly cementing her place. Elsa Sif Sandholt presented as a brilliant younger option with a breakout performance earlier this season, but Cholhok continues to get the most minutes.
“Mary Cholhok, she came in last season and I think we all had really big hopes for her. She, for me, was one to watch before last season started and we’re still waiting to see the best from her,” Beaton said, concluding that the Firebirds weren’t a clear-cut case in terms of what needed to change.
It’s worth remembering the Firebirds did commit long-term to Wills - with the Kiwi signed on as head coach until the end of the 2027 Super Netball season.
“We recognize that meaningful change requires time, and this extension ensures continuity as we accelerate toward our goals,” Netball Queensland Chief Executive Kate Davies said at the time. “Kiri’s approach has redefined our identity. This decision is a vote of trust in her strategy and our collective future.
”Emily Beaton believes that top coaches left a clear mark on their teams and it was up to Stewart, Reynolds and Wills to prove that they had the quality of leadership to do so.
“I think the Thunderbirds is a perfect case for that. They’re succeeding because they have filled gaps really well, but they are really developing that homegrown talent and you see that standards that they drive as well. Vixens, the standards that they drive within their own environment, that is a coach, and that is what rises. When your training is almost harder than what a game is, you can sustain pressure.
I would love to know what each training environment is like for these three sides that we’ve talked about. ”Bianca Chatfield pointed to the enormous opportunity that awaited each struggling team at season’s end: a complete roster overhaul, if necessary, as every player in SSN comes off-contract in line with the beginning of a new broadcast deal.
“When you think about how exciting the season is, the off-season’s going to be even more exciting probably, with every single player out of contract and can go anywhere,” Chatfield said. “You’ve gotta believe that the coaches and the list managers from every club are going to be out there already trying to piece together that jigsaw puzzle of what their team is going to look like in season 2027. ”
Thunderbirds Dan Ryan Elimination Final Loss Sunshine Coast Kate Davies Finals Contenders Netball Legend Ongoing Goal Shooter Massive Weekend Upset Fox Netball Personnel Setbacks List Managers Perth Complete Roster Overhaul Julie Fitzgerald Coach Belinda Reynolds Finals Spots Things Work Courtney Bruce New Zealand Goal Shooter Headache Finals Appearance Recruitment Coup Dual Premiership Winner Remarkable Netball Career Win-Loss Record Player Contracts Western Australia Bianca Chatfield Lucy Austin Oceania Ups And Downs Super Netball Cath Cox Cara Koenen Gerard Murphy Jane Watson Maddy Gordon Australia And New Zealand Greater Western Sydney Giants Nerida Stewart List Problem Debut Season Breakout Performance Liz Watson Karin Burger Emily Beaton Silver Ferns Kelly Jackson Australia Single Player Queensland
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