# 2017 Suncorp Super Netball season

The 2017 Suncorp Super Netball season was the inaugural season of the premier netball league in Australia, following the disbanding of the ANZ Championship in 2016. The regular season began on 18 February 2017 and concluded with the Grand Final on 17 June 2017.
Expansion team Sunshine Coast Lightning won the Grand Final, comfortably defeating Giants Netball at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.

## Overview

The season was played over 14 rounds, allowing every team to play each other twice, once at home and once away. The top 4 teams on the standings at the conclusion of the regular season qualified for the finals series. In the first week of the finals series, the 1st ranked team hosted the 2nd ranked team in the major semi-final (with the winner of that match to qualify for the Grand Final) and the 3rd ranked team hosted the 4th ranked team in the minor semi-final (with the loser of that match eliminated). The loser of the major semi-final then hosted the winner of the minor semi-final in the preliminary final. The winner of the major semi-final then hosted the winner of the preliminary final in the Grand Final. YES

## Standings

| # | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder | Suncorp Super Netball Ladder |
| # | Team | W | D | L | GF | GA | % | PTS |
| 1 | Melbourne Vixens | 11 | 1 | 2 | 874 | 774 | 118 | 23 |
| 2 | Sunshine Coast Lightning | 11 | 1 | 2 | 808 | 726 | 111 | 23 |
| 3 | Giants Netball | 10 | 0 | 4 | 773 | 728 | 106 | 20 |
| 4 | Collingwood Magpies | 9 | 0 | 5 | 770 | 730 | 106 | 18 |
| 5 | Queensland Firebirds | 7 | 1 | 6 | 778 | 756 | 103 | 15 |
| 6 | New South Wales Swifts | 3 | 1 | 10 | 726 | 792 | 92 | 7 |
| 7 | West Coast Fever | 2 | 0 | 12 | 670 | 779 | 86 | 4 |
| 8 | Adelaide Thunderbirds | 1 | 0 | 13 | 648 | 792 | 82 | 2 |

## Regular season

* All times are local; a full list of season results and match statistics can be found here

### Round 14
## Finals series
### Major semi-final

| 3 June 2017 4:00 pm | Report Stats | Melbourne Vixens | 55–56 | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Margaret Court Arena Attendance: 3,763 |
| Margaret Court Arena Attendance: 3,763 |||
| 3 June 2017 4:00 pm | Report Stats | Kumwenda 33/38 (87%) Philip 22/26 (85%) | | Bassett 44/47 (94%) Wood 12/14 (86%) | Margaret Court Arena Attendance: 3,763 |

### Minor semi-final

| 3 June 2017 7:00 pm | Report Stats | Giants Netball | 52–51 | Collingwood Magpies | Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre Attendance: 5,000 |
| Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre Attendance: 5,000 |||
| 3 June 2017 7:00 pm | Report Stats | Brice 29/33 (88%) Harten 23/25 (92%) | | Thwaites 37/45 (82%) Brown 14/16 (88%) | Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre Attendance: 5,000 |

### Preliminary final

| 10 June 2017 7:00 pm | Report Stats | Melbourne Vixens | 57–65 | Giants Netball | Hisense Arena |
| Hisense Arena |||
| 10 June 2017 7:00 pm | Report Stats | Kumwenda 37/44 (84%) Philip 20/26 (77%) | | Brice 42/44 (95%) Harten 23/25 (92%) | Hisense Arena |

### Grand Final

| 17 June 2017 7:00 pm | Report Stats | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Giants Netball | Brisbane Entertainment Centre Attendance: 8,999 |
| Brisbane Entertainment Centre Attendance: 8,999 |||
| Brisbane Entertainment Centre Attendance: 8,999 |||
| 17 June 2017 7:00 pm | Report Stats | Bassett 49/51 (96%) Wood 16/20 (80%) | Brice 24/29 (83%) Harten 20/25 (80%) Pettitt 4/7 (57%) | Brisbane Entertainment Centre Attendance: 8,999 |
* Karla Mostert (Sunshine Coast Lightning) was awarded the Most Valuable Player award in the Grand Final.

## Awards
### Team of the Week Award

| Round | GS | GA | WA | C | WD | GD | GK | Ref. |
| Round 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Round 2 | S. Wallace (NSW) | T. Philip (MEL) | K. Green (GIA) | L. Langman (SCL) | A. McCulloch (NSW) | R. Bulley (GIA) | S. Layton (COL) | Ref. |
| Round 3 | C. Bassett (SCL) | G. Tippett (QLD) | L. Watson (MEL) | E. Burger (QLD) | G. Simpson (QLD) | F. Themann (ADE) | S. Poolman (GIA) | Ref. |
| Round 4 | C. Thwaites (COL) | G. Tippett (QLD) | K. Green (GIA) | L. Watson (MEL) | K. Mostert (SCL) | E. Mikaere (SCL) | S. Layton (COL) | Ref. |
| Round 5 | C. Thwaites (COL) | T. Philip (MEL) | E. Bell (ADE) | L. Scherian (SCL) | G. Simpson (QLD) | R. Bulley (GIA) | C. Bruce (WCF) | Ref. |
| Round 6 | C. Bassett (SCL) | T. Philip (MEL) | M. Robinson (COL) | C. Nevins (QLD) | R. Ingles (ADE) | R. Bulley (GIA) | S. Klau (NSW) | Ref. |
| Round 7 | M. Kumwenda (MEL) | T. Philip (MEL) | L. Watson (MEL) | S. Guthrie (GIA) | L. Langman (SCL) | K. Shimmin (QLD) | G. Mentor (SCL) | Ref. |
| Round 8 | C. Thwaites (COL) | T. Philip (MEL) | L. Watson (MEL) | S. Guthrie (GIA) | A. McCulloch (NSW) | K. Mostert (SCL) | S. Layton (COL) | Ref. |
| Round 9 | C. Thwaites (COL) | S. Pettitt (GIA) | M. Robinson (COL) | K. Maloney (MEL) | A. Brazill (COL) | R. Bulley (GIA) | A. Agbeze (ADE) | Ref. |
| Round 10 | M. Kumwenda (MEL) | S. Wood (SCL) | L. Watson (MEL) | M. Proud (NSW) | G. Simpson (QLD) | R. Bulley (GIA) | E. Mannix (MEL) | Ref. |
| Round 11 | M. Kumwenda (MEL) | S. Wood (SCL) | L. Watson (MEL) | S. Guthrie (GIA) | R. Ingles (ADE) | J. Weston (MEL) | G. Mentor (SCL) | Ref. |
| Round 12 | C. Thwaites (COL) | J. Harten (GIA) | M. Robinson (COL) | K. Ravaillion (COL) | A. Brazill (COL) | R. Bulley (GIA) | S. Poolman (GIA) | Ref. |
| Round 13 | C. Thwaites (COL) | G. Tippett (QLD) | L. Watson (MEL) | L. Langman (SCL) | G. Simpson (QLD) | F. Themann (ADE) | E. Mannix (MEL) | Ref. |
| Round 14 | C. Bassett (SCL) | G. Tippett (QLD) | K. Browne (SCL) | S. Guthrie (GIA) | R. Ingles (ADE) | J. Weston (MEL) | C. Bruce (WCF) | Ref. |

### Postseason Awards

| Award | Winner | Position | Team | Ref. |
| Player of the Year Award | Geva Mentor | GK | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Ref. |
| Grand Final Most Valuable Player Award | Karla Mostert | GD | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Ref. |
| Young Star Award | Liz Watson | WA | Melbourne Vixens | Ref. |
| Joyce Brown Coach of the Year | Simone McKinnis | Coach | Melbourne Vixens | Ref. |
| Leading Goalscorer | Caitlin Thwaites | GS | Collingwood Magpies | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Mwai Kumwenda | GS | Melbourne Vixens | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Tegan Philip | GA | Melbourne Vixens | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Liz Watson | WA | Melbourne Vixens | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Laura Langman | C | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Gabi Simpson | WD | Queensland Firebirds | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Jo Weston | GD | Melbourne Vixens | Ref. |
| Team of the Year | Geva Mentor | GK | Sunshine Coast Lightning | Ref. |
Reserves in the Team of the Year: Caitlin Thwaites (Attack Reserve), Serena Guthrie (Mid Court Reserve) and Rebecca Bulley (Defender Reserve)

## Team captains and coaches

| Team | Captain | Coach | Ref. |
| Adelaide Thunderbirds | Erin Bell | Dan Ryan | Ref. |
| Collingwood Magpies | Madison Robinson | Kristy Keppich-Birrell | Ref. |
| Giants Netball | Kimberlee Green | Julie Fitzgerald | Ref. |
| Melbourne Vixens | Kate Moloney | Simone McKinnis | Ref. |
| NSW Swifts | Abbey McCulloch | Rob Wright | Ref. |
| Queensland Firebirds | Gabi Simpson | Roselee Jencke | Ref. |
| Sunshine Coast Lightning | Geva Mentor | Noeline Taurua | Ref. |
| West Coast Fever | Natalie Medhurst | Stacey Marinkovich | Ref. |