# Giants Netball

Giants Netball (stylised as GIANTS Netball) are an Australian professional netball team based in Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales. Since 2017 they have played in Suncorp Super Netball. The team was formed in 2016 as a joint venture between Netball New South Wales and Greater Western Sydney Giants. Giants have played in two grand finals (2017, 2021) and have won two minor premierships (2018, 2021).

## History
### New franchise

In May 2016, Netball Australia and Netball New Zealand announced that the ANZ Championship would be discontinued after the 2016 season. In Australia it was replaced by Suncorp Super Netball. The founding members of Suncorp Super Netball included the five former Australian ANZ Championship teams – Adelaide Thunderbirds, Melbourne Vixens, New South Wales Swifts, Queensland Firebirds and West Coast Fever; plus three brand new franchises: Collingwood Magpies, Sunshine Coast Lightning and Giants Netball. Giants were formed as a joint venture or "strategic alliance" between Netball New South Wales and Greater Western Sydney Giants and were officially launched in September 2016.

### Julie Fitzgerald era

In August 2016, Julie Fitzgerald was announced as the inaugural head coach of Netball New South Wales's new franchise. Two veteran New South Wales Swifts players, Kimberlee Green and Susan Pettitt, subsequently switched to the Giants. Green was named the inaugural Giants captain. Giants went onto finish the 2017 season as runners-up after losing 65–48 to Sunshine Coast Lightning in the grand final.
In 2018, Fitzgerald guided Giants to the minor premiership. However, in the final series they lost out to both West Coast Fever and Sunshine Coast Lightning. In 2021, Fitzgerald guided Giants to a both a second minor premiership and a second grand final. However, in the grand final they lost out to New South Wales Swifts.

### Regular season statistics

| Season | Position | Won | Drawn | Lost |
| 2017 | 3rd | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| 2018 | 1st | 10 | 1 | 3 |
| 2019 | 5th | 7 | 1 | 6 |
| 2020 | 6th | 5 | 2 | 7 |
| 2021 | 1st | 9 | 0 | 5 |
| 2022 | 3rd | 8 | 0 | 6 |
| 2023 | 6th | 5 | 0 | 9 |
Grand finalists Minor Premierships Minor Premierships and Grand finalists

### Grand finals

| Season | Winners | Score | Runners Up | Venue | Attendance |
| 2017 | Sunshine Coast Lightning | 65–48 | Giants Netball | Brisbane Entertainment Centre | 8,999 |
| 2021 | New South Wales Swifts | 63–59 | Giants Netball | Nissan Arena | 3,650 |

## Home venues

Giants made their Suncorp Super Netball on 18 February 2017 against New South Wales Swifts at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre. Between 2017 and 2019, Giants played their home matches at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre, Qudos Bank Arena and the AIS Arena.
In 2020, together with Swifts, Giants were due to start to playing their home games at the Ken Rosewall Arena. However these plans were put on hold until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| | Years |
| Ken Rosewall Arena | 2021– |
| AIS Arena | 2017–2019 |
| Qudos Bank Arena | 2017–2019 |
| Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre | 2017–2019 |
| International Convention Centre Sydney | 2018 |

### Notes

* ^1 Also referred to as the Sydney Super Dome.
* ^2 Also referred to as the State Sports Centre and the QuayCentre.

## Notable players
### 2025 squad

Giants Netball 2025 playing roster :
| Nat | Name | Position(s) | DoB | Height | Notes |
| ENG | Joanne Harten | GS/GA | 21/03/1989 | 1.83 m (6.0 ft) | Head Coach: Julie Fitzgerald |
| AUS | Matisse Letherbarrow | GS/GA | 07/01/2002 | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | Assistant Coach: |
| AUS | Sophie Dwyer | GA/GS | 05/12/2001 | 1.83 m (6.0 ft) | -(C)= Captain |
| NZL | Gina Crampton | WA/C | 07/12/1991 | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) | -(CC)= Co-Captain |
| AUS | Maddie Hay (IN) | WA/C/WD | 11/04/1995 | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) | -(VC)= Vice-Captain |
| AUS | Jamie-Lee Price | C/WD | 10/01/1996 | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | -(TP)=Training Partner |
| AUS | Amy Sligar | C/WD/WA | 13/03/2002 | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | -(RP)= Replacement Player |
| JAM | Jodi-Ann Ward | GD/WD/GK | 01/09/1994 | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | -(IN)= Injury |
| AUS | Erin O'Brien | GD/GK | 03/01/2005 | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | -(MAT)= Maternity Leave |
| AUS | Matilda McDonell | GK/GD | 22/06/2000 | 1.84 m (6.0 ft) | |

### Internationals
#### Australia

| Kiera Austin Caitlin Bassett April Brandley Rebecca Bulley Kimberlee Green | Kristiana Manu'a Susan Pettitt Jamie-Lee Price Sophie Dwyer |

#### Australia Fast5

* Samantha Poolman

#### England

* Serena Guthrie
* Joanne Harten

#### Jamaica

* Jodi-Ann Ward

### Captains

| | Years |
| 2016–2019 | Kimberlee Green |
| 2019–2023 | Joanne Harten |
| 2024– | Joanne Harten & Jamie-Lee Price |

### Award winners
#### Suncorp Super Netball
##### Young Star Award

| Season | Player |
| 2019 | Amy Parmenter |
| 2021 | Sophie Dwyer |

##### SSN Team of the Year

| Season | Players |
| 2017 | Reserves: Serena Guthrie, Rebecca Bulley |
| 2018 | C: Serena Guthrie, Reserves: Joanne Harten, Kimberlee Green |
| 2020 | GA: Kiera Austin |
| 2021 | GA: Joanne Harten, WA: Maddie Hay, Reserve: Jamie-Lee Price |
| 2022 | WD: Amy Parmenter, Reserve: Joanne Harten |

#### Giants awards
##### HCF Giants Most Valued Player

| Season | Player |
| 2017 | Serena Guthrie |
| 2018 | Joanne Harten |
| 2019 | Joanne Harten |
| 2020 | Kiera Austin |
| 2021 | Joanne Harten |
Source:

##### Giants Players' Player award

| Season | Player |
| 2017 | Rebecca Bulley |
| 2018 | Joanne Harten |
| 2019 | Samantha Poolman |
| 2020 | Kiera Austin |
| 2021 | April Brandley |
Source:

##### Giants Members' Player of the Year

| Season | Player |
| 2017 | Joanne Harten Samantha Poolman |
| 2018 | Joanne Harten |
| 2019 | Amy Parmenter |
| 2020 | Amy Parmenter |
| 2021 | Sophie Dwyer |
Source:

## Head coaches

| Coach | Years |
| Julie Fitzgerald | 2016– |

## Giants Netball Academy

Giants Netball Academy are the reserve team of Giants Netball. They originally played as Canberra Giants.

## Premierships

* Suncorp Super Netball
** Runners up: 2017, 2021
** Minor Premiership: 2018, 2021