The Greater Western Sydney GIANTS today welcomed Australian netball’s newest team, GIANTS Netball, to the AFL club’s growing family.

The GIANTS Netball brand and playing list were unveiled at Netball Central in Sydney Olympic Park on Thursday by GIANTS CEO David Matthews, Netball NSW CEO Carolyn Campbell and inaugural GIANTS Netball Head Coach Julie Fitzgerald. 

Netball Australia announced in May 2016 that a new Australian only, eight-team national league will commence in February 2017, the National Netball League. 

The new competition will consist of the five current Australian ANZ Championship teams – Adelaide Thunderbirds, Melbourne Vixens, NSW Swifts, Queensland Firebirds and West Coast Fever – plus an additional three new teams. 

Netball NSW have entered into a strategic alliance with the GIANTS in order to bring to life the new New South Wales-based team, the GIANTS.

Owned and operated by Netball NSW, GIANTS Netball sits within the wider GWS GIANTS family which also includes the club’s new team in the inaugural AFL Women’s competition, set to commence in 2017.

“We’re delighted to welcome GIANTS Netball to the broader GIANTS family,” GWS GIANTS CEO David Matthews said.

“When you look at the fact we’ve got an AFL women’s team and we’ve now partnered with Australia’s newest elite level netball team, the growth of the club is undeniable. 

“There’s a long, rich history of Australian Football partnering with netball – right around the country there are countless football/netball clubs at the community level – and we’re proud to be continuing that tradition on a national stage.

“The game of netball shares many of the values we as a code and as a club hold dear. At the GIANTS we pride ourselves on being an inclusive, high performance organisation with a meaningful community footprint. These objectives and values are shared by Netball NSW and in turn GIANTS Netball.

“We have always had a strong focus on families and diversity and we see this strategic alliance with GIANTS Netball as one of the most significant partnerships we will ever undertake.

“This partnership makes sense on every conceivable level, which is why we’re so excited by the prospect of seeing the GIANTS run out in the new National Netball League next year.”

GIANTS Netball players and coaching staff will receive unprecedented access to the GIANTS’ high performance expertise and facilities for strength and conditioning purposes, performance analysis equipment and expertise. 

Today also saw the 2017 GIANTS playing roster revealed.

NSW stalwarts Kim Green and Susan Pettitt will join the GIANTS for their inaugural season, alongside English internationals Jo Harten and Serena Guthrie, as well as recent Australian Diamond debutant Kristiana Manu’a.

They will be joined by reigning ANZ Championship Best New Talent recipient Kristina Brice - a Western Sydney junior - as well as 2016 20/U International representatives Toni Anderson (NSW representative) and Sydney-born Jamie-Lee Price from Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic (2013-2016). 

Returning home to NSW will be Brice’s 2016 Adelaide Thunderbirds teammate and Newcastle native Sam Poolman, while former NSW Swift and State team Captain Taylah Davies finalises the 10-player line-up. 

Coach Julie Fitzgerald said she is excited to be returning home to New South Wales to take up the role of Head Coach of the GIANTS Netball team.

“I think we have created a perfectly balanced team, which will put us in a really strong position for the 2017 National Netball League,” Fitzgerald said. 

“There are more than 250 international caps amongst the playing group, which also features some of netball’s rising stars. The potential of this team is incredibly exciting; I can’t wait for pre-season to get started to see what they can do together.” 

“Not only have we assembled a formidable roster, but we have a strong representation of NSW athletes which for me was critical. Eighty percent of our 2017 roster has a direct link to NSW – whether they were born here, or have played their junior netball here – and I hope this inspires young NSW netballers that one day they too could play for the Club.”

The new partnership between the GIANTS and Netball NSW will continue to grow with benefits for members of both codes.

“We’ve built the Sydney Derby against the Swans pretty rapidly and I think the Derby between the GIANTS and the Swifts is going to be a similar sort of feel,” Mr Matthews said.

“I hope when our fixture comes out that we can work closely with Netball Australia, Netball NSW and the new team to see how complementary the fixtures can be to maximise opportunities for both membership bases.”

Register your interest to become a Foundation Member of GIANTS Netball here.