ANZ Championship

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For the golf tournament in Australia, see ANZ Championship (golf).
ANZ Championship
Current season or competition:
ANZ Championship season 2008
ANZ Championship logo
Sport Netball
Founded 2007
Inaugural season 2008
No. of teams 10
Country(ies) Flag of Australia Australia
Flag of New Zealand New Zealand
TV partner(s) Fox Sports (Australia)
SKY Sports (New Zealand)
Official website anz-championship.com

The ANZ Championship is the elite netball competition between five teams from Australia and New Zealand. It began in April 2008. It succeeds Australia's Commonwealth Bank Trophy and New Zealand's National Bank Cup as the highest level of competitive netball in these countries.[1] The competition had been provisionally known as the Tasman Trophy prior to ANZ being secured as naming sponsor.

Contents

[edit] Teams

Each of the ten teams represents long established regional netball organisations. The Australian teams represent the five largest Australian regions, while the five New Zealand teams represent a number of the country's adjacent regions. All but one the teams in the final year of the Commonwealth Bank Trophy and National Bank Cup are represented in the new league, either in their previous form with a new name, or as part of a merged entity. The exception is the AIS Canberra Darters, who competed in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy representing the Australian Institute of Sport and the Australian Capital Territory, but not in the ANZ Championship. Additionally, no team represents the Australian netball regions of Tasmania or the Northern Territory.

Team Country Represented region(s) Former team(s)
New South Wales Swifts Australia New South Wales Sydney Swifts, Hunter Jaegers
Melbourne Vixens Australia Victoria Melbourne Phoenix,
Melbourne Kestrels
Queensland Firebirds Australia Queensland Queensland Firebirds
West Coast Fever Australia Western Australia Perth Orioles
Adelaide Thunderbirds Australia South Australia Adelaide Thunderbirds
Northern Mystics New Zealand Northland, Auckland-Waitakere,
Counties Manukau		 Auckland Diamonds, Northern Force
Central Pulse New Zealand Eastern North Island, Western North Island, Wellington, Tasman Wellington Shakers, Western Flyers
Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic New Zealand Waikato, Bay of Plenty Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic
Canterbury Tactix New Zealand Canterbury Canterbury Flames
Southern Steel New Zealand Southland, Otago Southern Sting, Otago Rebels

[edit] Franchise map

Image:Map of Australia and New Zealand.png

[edit] History

Elite domestic netball in the two countries previously included the Commonwealth Bank Trophy in Australia and the National Bank Cup in New Zealand. The last season for these competitions was in 2007, after which it was announced that a single trans-Tasman competition would replace them. It was envisioned that five teams from each country would each compete in the new competition to start in 2008.

[edit] Franchise selection

The deadline for expressions of interests for Australian franchises was April 10, 2007.[2] In March 2007, Netball Australia chief executive Kate Palmer has said the preferred model was for one team each from NSW, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia.[3] In April this was confirmed as the composition of the league's Australian teams. Netball New South Wales boss Caroline Campbell said that she was disappointed that the Sydney Swifts and the Hunter Jaegars would have to merge.[4] Netball Victoria president Jenny Sanchez said that she had an open mind about whether Victoria would enter one of the two existing teams or a new franchise,[3] but by May 2007, the organisation had chosen to enter a single merged team.[5] Netball ACT also bid for a franchise,[6] but were unsuccessful.[5]

For New Zealand franchises, April 10 was also the deadline set for expressions of interest, with a confirmation date of April 23 announced.[7] Early in the selection process, Netball New Zealand chairman Don Mackinnon said there would be three franchises from the North Island and two from the South Island.[7] Five proposed New Zealand teams for the competition – three from the North Island, two from the South Island – were confirmed by the end of April, and approved in early May.[8]

[edit] Competition format

See also: ANZ Championship season 2008

In 2008, the league will operate as a 17-week tournament with 69 matches from April to July.[9] During the initial round-robin phase, each team will play other teams from their own country twice, and play teams from the other country once; each team has one bye. Teams will also play at least six home games. The four teams who have accumulated the most competition points at the end of the round-robin phase progress to the finals series; other teams are eliminated from the competition.[10]

The finals series is played over three weeks. The 1st-ranked team from the round-robin phase hosts the 2nd-ranked team in the major semi-final, while 3rd hosts 4th in the minor semi-final (the loser of which is eliminated). The loser of the major semi-final hosts the winner of the minor semi-final in the preliminary final. The grand final is contested between the winner of the major semi-final and the winner of the preliminary final, with the former team as hosts.[10]

[edit] Media coverage and sponsorship

All 69 games will be shown live on Fox Sports in Australia, and live matches will be broadcast on SKY Sports in New Zealand. Fox Sports has signed a one-year deal, whilst SKY Sports has a three-year deal.[1] These media rights are believed to be worth AU$1.5 million, with guaranteed primetime telecasts until 2010.[11] In New Zealand, Television New Zealand has delayed coverage rights, due to Netball New Zealand's split broadcasting deal between TVNZ (who have Silver Ferns games rights) and SKY.

On October 9, 2007, ANZ Bank was announced as the league's major sponsor for the initial season, resulting in the league being renamed the "ANZ Championship".[12] GM Holden and Fisher & Paykel have also been named as major sponsors.[13]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b New look trans-Tasman netball competition. Netball Australia (2007-03-11). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  2. ^ AAP. "Trans-Tasman netball tournament in 2008", The Sydney Morning Herald, 2007-03-12. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  3. ^ a b AAP. "Game enters new era with trans-Tasman trophy", The Age, 2007-03-13. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  4. ^ NSW Netball boss speaks up. Newstalk ZB (2007-03-13). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  5. ^ a b ACT left out of Tasman Trophy. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (2007-05-10). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.
  6. ^ Worthington, Sam. "Confident bid for ACT presence in new league", Blayney Chronicle, 2007-03-13. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  7. ^ a b Bull, Alastair. "Ten-team trans-Tasman netball league revealed", The New Zealand Herald, 2007-03-12. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  8. ^ NZPA. "Nod to all five Tasman Trophy bids", The New Zealand Herald, 2007-05-09. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  9. ^ Fox Sports. "Fox Sports to Broadcast Tasman Trophy", Netball Australia, 2007-03-11. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  10. ^ a b ANZ Championship profile at Netball New Zealand
  11. ^ AAP. "Netballers for trans-Tasman league", The Sydney Morning Herald, 2007-02-26. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  12. ^ AAP. "Professional era coming soon: Ellis", The Age, 2007-10-09. Retrieved on 2008-04-03. 
  13. ^ A landmark era: ANZ Championship. Netball Australia (2008-03-28). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.

[edit] External links


v • d • e
ANZ Championship
Teams
Organising bodies
Former competitions
Commonwealth Bank Trophy (Australia) · National Bank Cup (New Zealand)
Seasons
Website: www.anz-championship.com