20 Jul 2018

Silver Ferns coach Janine Southby has resigned

7:11 pm on 20 July 2018

Silver Ferns coach Janine Southby has resigned in the wake of Netball New Zealand's independent review of the team's disastrous Commonwealth Games campaign, in which they did not even collect a medal.

Silver Ferns coach Janine Southby ponders her side's performance against England.

Silver Ferns coach Janine Southby ponders her side's performance against England. Photo: Photosport

Netball New Zealand chief executive Jennie Wyllie said she accepted Southby's resignation earlier today.

"I would like to acknowledge the contribution that Janine has made and thank her for her hard work.

"Janine remains a key member of the netball family, a fine coach and we look forward to having the opportunity to work with her in the future."

Ms Southby said she was "very sad" to have reached this point.

"We were at a real point of transition when I was appointed, and I believed it would take time to make the necessary change.

"Over the last two years I have worked hard to develop a high performance culture based on accountability and self-responsibility.

"I felt we were making steps in the right direction, however I have to acknowledge this hasn't happened as quickly or as well as I would have liked.

"The results we were able to deliver through the transition were unacceptable and far less than what we were aiming for. As head coach, I have to front up to my own responsibility in producing those results and I have.

Netball New Zealand will name a Silver Ferns squad on 14 August ahead of the Netball Quad series in September, which will be played in New Zealand and Australia.

The process to appoint a new Silver Ferns coach will begin immediately.

Fault found with Southby's coaching style

The independent review found that a combination of factors contributed to the poor performance of the team.

It found that while the Silver Ferns lacked depth and experience, they still significantly under-performed at the Commonwealth Games and in the six months prior.

Although the standard in world netball has improved in recent years, the review found that had the team played to its potential, it could have medalled, or made the final.

The team itself was relatively inexperienced and it lost key members of the leadership group throughout 2016 and 2017.

The remaining senior players were not able to fill the huge leadership void that was created by those departures.

The coaches were relatively inexperienced at international level and the review also found fault with Ms Southby's coaching style.

It said she was strongly committed to developing a player-led culture, but that philosophy did not connect with the team.

Several players began to lose confidence in both themselves and the coaches over the course of 2017.

After the loss to Malawai at the Commonwealth Games, the review found that rather than coming together, the team and coaching group fractured and confidence disappeared.

Netball New Zealand said it was absolutely committed to addressing the key findings of the review.

The review was conducted by Auckland lawyer and experienced sports director Don Mackinnon, Team New Zealand chief operations officer Kevin Shoebridge, and former Silver Fern Linda Vagana.

The review process included: Silver Ferns coaches, management and athletes; Netball New Zealand management and board members; ANZ Premiership franchise coaches; New Zealand Netball Players' Association; High Performance New Zealand; and key influencers to netball as determined by the panel.