Auckland merits two netball franchises in new league, says former Stars boss

A former ANZ Premiership franchise executive has affirmed that New Zealand's largest city warrants two teams in the newly established private netball league, despite the possibility that one franchise may be cut from the competition.

Netball New Zealand recently endorsed a proposal by Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams to establish a private franchise league, signing a non-binding term sheet with the high-profile couple. The investors have committed to a minimum five-team competition in 2027, which could result in one of the six current franchises being removed.

Three of the six franchises are owned by Netball New Zealand: the Mainland Tactix, the Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic, and the South Auckland-based Stars. The Southern Steel, Wellington-based Pulse, and the Auckland-based Mystics are owned by their respective netball zones and operate independently.

Former Stars general manager defends franchise's position

Jane Bennett, who served as general manager of the Stars until recently, does not believe the Netball NZ-owned franchises are more vulnerable to exclusion from the new league.

“Actually I think it makes it cleaner in a way for those teams because I guess work was underway in terms of thinking about what a sustainable future looked like for teams, even while options for the competition were still being worked through,” Bennett said.

“We had started looking at what that could look like from an ownership perspective prior to this announcement so while nothing formal had happened, there was definitely work underway.”

Bennett noted that the franchises owned by Netball NZ were naturally leaner in their operations.

“Those teams are actually already set up to function separately in a way as just the team, whereas there's more infrastructure with the zone teams but they still have to go through the same work now to get to the point where they can be one of the teams in that competition next year.”

Geographical considerations and fan support

The Stars have the shortest history of any ANZ Premiership side, having been added to the competition in 2017 as the second Auckland-based team.

“At the end of the day there's two teams in Auckland, maybe it makes the Stars vulnerable just from a geographical perspective, the other two teams [Magic and Tactix] are in spaces where they are not competing with other teams.”

However, Bennett maintains that with one third of the population based in Auckland, the city warrants having two teams.

“And the Stars have got the fanbase, so whoever comes in and looks at ownership of this team, they've got a really strong foundation to work with, the story is there and the values are there.

“The Stars had really strong growth in attendance and engagement, selling out games for the last three seasons so the opportunity that I believe is there for the Stars [potential new owner] should mean that it will stay in the competition next year.”

Investors' track record with Auckland FC

Bennett said the achievements of Mowbray and Williams with A-League football club Auckland FC, in which they hold a 15 percent stake, were noteworthy. Earlier this year, Auckland FC became the A-League Men champions in front of a sold-out home crowd in just their second season.

“I watched Auckland FC with interest and when they launched and the work they did and there's no doubt that the backing they had meant they could really invest in key resources in that commercial and marketing space. They've been able to build really quickly and I don't doubt that what they've learnt through that and the profile they've built will definitely be a halo for this new netball competition.”

Timeline and ownership decisions ahead

RNZ understands that Mowbray and Williams had just three weeks from last week's announcement to finalise the necessary arrangements to launch the league. Mowbray stated that the final number of teams will depend on how quickly infrastructure can be established and on finding suitable investors.

“One thing that we've learned through the building of AFC ... is the importance of really great owners. Great owners help to build a league, help to ensure that the standards are set and that we're able to deliver something really special,” Mowbray said.

“What is going to ultimately be the one deciding factor in how many teams there are going into 2027 is whether we believe we've got the owners that are coming to the table and are going to be able to provide the standards in the league that we wish to see and that we're all dreaming of seeing in netball.”

Mowbray told reporters it would not be safe to assume that the Netball NZ-owned franchises were more at risk of being dropped.

Stars begin exploring future ownership

In a recent social media post, the Stars confirmed that discussions regarding the future ownership of the franchise had commenced.

“We believe there is a real opportunity to build something stronger, more sustainable and more ambitious for the future. We want to play our part in shaping what comes next and will be actively exploring the opportunities for Stars to be part of the new competition,” the post read.

Bennett concluded her tenure at the Stars last month, with Netball NZ pausing contract extensions while considering the future of the ANZ Premiership. During her four seasons with the Stars, the league struggled to secure a broadcast deal for the last three seasons.

She believes a private ownership model is the best way forward for New Zealand's domestic netball league.

“Obviously there's probably still some nervousness or a lot of clarity to be worked through but I think overall it means investment into our sport and the product wasn't broken ... so someone coming in and bringing that investment will just make it better and better.”

Bennett said Mowbray and Williams would not be starting from scratch.

“They'll use a lot of the foundation there, I'm sure. There is a lot of work to do and quickly and it's a really pivotal time to get that planning underway but I guess they went in eyes wide open.”

Player departures during transition period

The Stars lost four key players while Netball NZ was still deciding on the future of the ANZ Premiership. Silver Ferns Amelia Walmsley and Mila Reuelu-Buchanan will play in Australia's Super Netball competition next year with the Melbourne Vixens, while former Silver Fern Claire O'Brien will play for the Sydney Sirens. Wider Silver Ferns squad member and Stars stalwart Kate Burley recently announced her retirement from the sport.

“It was a really hard decision for them but we had open conversations at the end of the day I didn't want any of them to feel guilty for making that decision because they did what they needed to do and they will grow from that experience.

“It was a bit sad for Temepara Bailey [Stars coach] and I because we knew the foundation we had built this year was really really strong and we were excited about building that next year with the same team.

“But once one door closes another will open, so it will create a lot more opportunities for new players coming through as well.”