Silver Ferns complaints about Dame Noeline Taurua revealed from Netball NZ report

This story was first published by the Herald in November.

The Silver Ferns complaints which triggered the standing-down of Dame Noeline Taurua have been revealed.

Taurua was stood down in September, days out from the Taini Jamison Trophy series against South Africa, but has since been reinstated.

It followed anonymous player complaints stemming from a training camp in Sydney in January. The Players Association put these complaints to Netball New Zealand, who eventually launched a review, led by former New Zealand Cricket high-performance chief Bryan Stronach.

Newstalk ZB’s Heather du Plessis-Allan read parts of the Stronach report on-air on Friday.

Du Plessis-Allan said the players had numerous issues with Taurua’s leadership.

She said the first problem was “fear and psychological safety”.

Reading from the report, Du Plessis-Allan said: “A strong theme was a sense of fear within the environment. Players talked about being scared to speak up, scared to make mistakes, scared to ask questions and scared to be themselves.

“The fear was not described as one-off or occasional. It has been around for a long time.

“Some shared that they don’t feel like they can give honest feedback because it won’t be received well or because it will come back on them later.

“The source of fear seems to come from a few things: inconsistent reactions from leaders, unclear expectations and a history of seeing others shut down or left out after speaking up. Some players describe feeling like they were always walking on eggshells.”

Du Plessis-Allan said issue two was “mixed messages and contradictions” while issue three was “the weight of not feeling good enough”.

“Many players talked about a constant undertone of not being good enough. Even when feedback was meant to help, it often came across as negative or critical.

“This led to players feeling like they were always trying to avoid failure instead of reaching for their best. They described an environment where the tone can be quite intense and the feedback is more about what’s wrong than what’s working.

“Some shared that they began to second-guess everything or withdraw a bit just to stay out of the firing line.”

Continuing to read from the report, Du Plessis-Allan said issue seven was “inconsistency and shifting standards”.

“Players noticed that the behaviour and mood of the coaching and support staff can change noticeably depending on whether the team is winning or not.

“When results are going well, the environment feels more relaxed and positive, but when the team is not performing, expectations shift suddenly, and the tone becomes more intense and critical.

“There was also a sense that individual players are treated differently. Some are held accountable for small things, while others are not challenged on bigger issues. Another example was the fitness standard and how some were held accountable to it and others not.”

Du Plessis-Allan said issue nine was “commitment to high standards”.

“It was clear that the players believe in the importance of high standards. Players acknowledged they don’t always meet the standards and they want to be held accountable when that does happen.

“The concern was not about the existence of standards, but about how they are implemented and communicated. When standards feel unclear or inconsistently applied, it undermines the purpose.”

Taurua has confirmed she has seen the report, but is adamant she has done nothing wrong.

The 2019 World Cup-winning coach has been reinstated but will not take over the Silver Ferns until next year, before the Commonwealth Games.

The New Zealand netball team are in Glasgow for the first of their two tests against Scotland on Monday morning, before three games against England.

Taurua has been left at home to “minimize disruption”.

Taurua told the Herald on Monday she still does not know the specifics of player complaints which saw her stood down in September.

The Herald understands some players are unhappy with Taurua’s claim that she is unaware of the particulars.

Nathan Limm has been a journalist with Newstalk ZB and the NZ Herald since 2020. He covered the Netball World Cup in Cape Town in 2023, hosts The Big League Podcast and commentates rugby and netball for Gold Sport.