Taurua coaching decision not the only issue for Netball NZ

Sunday, 4 February 2024

The Silver Ferns perform their haka at the 1963 world champs.

ANALYSIS: Whether Dame Noeline Taurua sticks about as Silver Ferns coach isn’t the only pressing headache for Netball New Zealand.

Off contract with NNZ after the Nations Cup in England, where the Ferns finished third, Taurua is set to announce her coaching decision in the coming weeks.

Taurua’s call is significant, but it’s not NNZ’s only conundrum. The elephant on the court is the domestic ANZ Premiership and ongoing concerns it’s not adequately preparing players for international netball.

There are still too many turnovers in matches and teams know they can lose multiple games and still make the top three finals. Kiwi sides struggled against Australian opposition in the former trans-Tasman league, but every second week they’d be testing themselves against uncompromising defences from across the ditch, and a superior playing standard.

Finding a way for premiership players to match up against Australian sides more often, even in the form of an end of season cross-competition showdown, must be a priority.

Adding to NNZ’s worry lines is the revelation the sport’s broadcast revenue is set to plummet after their current deal with Sky TV ends after the 2024 season.

Whether Dame Noeline Taurua remains as Silver Ferns coach will have far-reaching ramifications on the game in New Zealand.

RNZ reported in December the offer from Sky was less than half its current broadcast rights agreement. The broadcast deal, which is thought to be around $10 million, covers the salary caps of the six ANZ Premiership teams.

Taurua’s coaching decision is the most immediate issue requiring attention, though.

The 55-year-old would make a decent poker player.

If Taurua does know what way she is leaning, she has given little away. One person close to the Ferns coach said she was “genuinely undecided” before heading away for the Nations Cup.

Noeline Taurua laughs with Maria Folau, Casey Kopua, and Shannon Saunders after winning the 2019 Netball World Cup.

Taurua, who arrived back on Wednesday, is poised to meet with NNZ boss Jennie Wyllie and head of high performance Stephen Hotter and iron out her plans.

Should Taurua re-commit to the Ferns, who she has guided since replacing Janine Southby in August 2018, it is almost certain she will sign a short-term deal.

England’s Imogen Allison and New Zealand’s Tayla Earle tussle for the ball at the Nations Cup in Leeds.

That could be two years, or potentially just one, giving both Taurua and NNZ flexibility as they build towards the pinnacle event of the 2027 Netball World Cup in Sydney.

Stars coach Kiri Wills would be a possible Silver Ferns coaching contender if Noeline Taurua stepped away.

Taurua is still the best candidate in the country to lead the Silver Ferns, and by some distance. If she still has the desire, passion, and vision to mentor the side, NNZ would unlikely stand in her way.

Former Silver Ferns coach Yvonne Willering told Stuff this week Taurua was “absolutely” the right person to remain in charge.

Stand-in England coach Liana Leota, right, directs orders from the sideline in the opening test against the Silver Ferns in September.

If Taurua knew she wasn’t going to carry on through to the World Cup, Willering was eager for NNZ to get her potential long-term replacement involved with the national team. They could serve as an apprentice coach, learning what made Taurua tick, but wouldn’t be involved in an assistant coach capacity.

NNZ do have several potential future head coaching options like Stars coach Kiri Wills, Marianne Delaney-Hoshek (Tactix) and Reinga Bloxham (Steel). Those three coaches would probably agree taking on the Ferns top job right now would be too early in their coaching journey.

Former Ferns assistant Yvette McCausland-Durie, who steered the Central Pulse to three ANZ Premiership titles, might be the most natural fit if Taurua left.

McCausland-Durie, who finished up with the Pulse last season, has plenty on her plate, opening a new Māori boys boarding school, St Stephen’s School (Tīpene), in the Bombay Hills with husband Nathan Durie, which reopens next year.

Liana Leota, the former Silver Ferns midcourter, is an intriguing long-term name. Leota is technical coach for England and head coach of the Leeds Rhinos in Netball Super League.

Her reputation was only enhanced when stepping in for England head coach Jess Thirlby in last year’s Taini Jamison Trophy against the Ferns. Leota coached the second-string Roses to an upset 55-54 win in the first test in Christchurch. The Ferns avoided an embarrassing series defeat, hanging on 2-1.

Leota is in the formative stage of her coaching career, but has made quite the impression.

Happy living in Manchester with husband, former pro rugby player Johnny Leota, and their five children, Leota indicated to Stuff last year she wouldn’t rule out a return to New Zealand one day. Johnny is academy skills coach for the Sale Sharks in the English Premiership.

Taurua holds the keys to the Ferns’ coaching throne. What she decides to do, and if she continues how long she commits for, will have an instant impact and deep ramifications for everyone in the elite sphere.