COMPETITION CHANGES
There have been some changes!!
Intermediate, College, Senior and Premier
Over the last few years it has become more apparent that there are senior players who just want to play netball without the pressure or expectation of promotion into Premier Reserve grades. AND mums out there who give up their own Saturday sports so that their children or husband can play while they are the taxi driver or have the children, AND those who have to work Saturdays!
Based on this at the end of the 2022 season WNC sent out a survey to clubs and schools posing some questions about changes to its competitions, there was strong support for these changes but also those who still wanted the traditional Saturday structure. Based on all this feedback WNC has made the decision to change their competition structures which we hope will allow more participation for our players 18 years and older.
There has also been some changes to the length & format of the competitions;
- Intermediates - 15 weeks
2wks Grading | 5wks Preliminary Round | 1 Promotion/Relegation | 5wks Championship Round | 1wk Finals | 1wk Festival Day
- Seniors – 14 weeks
2wks Grading | 5wks Preliminary Round | Automatic swap of 6th Seed & 1st Seed | 5wks Championship Round | 2wks Finals (Semi & Final)
Please note - Pending team numbers it is possible that the format could change to;
2wks Grading | 7wks Preliminary Round | 3wks Championship Round | 2wk Finals
- Collegiate (Secondary), Opens & Premier - 15 weeks
2wks Grading | 5wks Preliminary Round | 1 Promotion/Relegation | 5wks Championship Round | 2wks Finals (Semi & Final)
Juniors Year 1 & 2
As part of the Balance is Better Philosophy WNC decided to trial Juniors Year 1 & 2 playing over two blocks in 2022. Based on feedback from the 2022 Survey WNC will continue again with the 2 blocks for 2023 however the blocks will be reduced to 7 weeks in Term 2 and 6 weeks in Term 3.
Juniors Year 3 - 6
No changes for the 2023 season.
And lastly……..all competitions will start in Term 2 for the 2023 season, starting between 29 April to 13 May. The Season Calendars are available on our website (Winter-Competition/Calendars).
College Competition – Player Eligibility
Over the past 3 years WNC has been investigating making changes to the player eligibility for the College competition. Based on recorded situations as well as consulting with other Netball Centres in our region and our Regional Sports Organisation WNC has made the decision to remove the requirement that players must be attending Secondary School and are Under 19 as per the Secondary School Association criteria.
This will be replaced with the following criteria:
All players registered in College Grades/Teams must be either;
- Year 9 to Year 13 and registered/playing for a Secondary School
If a player leaves school during the season they are entitled to complete the season in that grade/team at the discretion of the School. - Under 18 on the 1st of January of that calendar year and registered/playing for a Club College team.
There may be instances where a player is 18 as of the 1st January but would have been entering their Year 13 year, if a Club encounters this then application needs to be made in writing to the WNC office with evidence that the player would have been a Year 13 student during the coming season.
Clubs will be able to open their registrations to players who have chosen to leave school early and continue to compete against players of the same age and skill. And also allow schools, at their discretion, to hold on to players and see out the season.
Mixed & Males in Netball
Based on the overall positive feedback indicated in the graph below from players/coaches and administrators who were part of the grades/teams where Collegiate Year 9 boys were playing, WNC has made the decision to include Year 9 boys into the Collegiate competition for 2023 and trial the inclusion of Year 10 males.
The inclusion of Year 9-10 boys will be for teams in the College A1 grade and below, with no more than one (1) male allowed on court at any one time.
Please note – At this stage WNC does not plan to extend the playing age for Males in the College competition beyond Year 10. We will continue to work on providing a Senior Collegiate and/or Adult Mixed Competition which we hope will cater further for males in netball.
If a Club or School competing in Premier or Premier Reserve are looking to select a Year 9/10 male player then application needs to be made to WNC, who will consult with the teams of those grades before approval is given.
Netball NZ have also released guidance for Centres looking to include Males in Netball and case studies from other Centres. Netball NZ overall guidance is to develop, foster, and encourage the participation of men, and boys in Netball, while protecting and continuing to nurture the unique position that Netball holds as the leading sport for women and girls in New Zealand.
