2011 ANZ Championship season

2011 ANZ Championship season

League	ANZ Championship
Sport	Netball
Number of teams	10
TV partner/s	One HD (Australia) Network Ten (Australia) SKY Sports (NZ) TVNZ (NZ)
2011 ANZ Championship season
Champions	Queensland Firebirds
Runners-up	Northern Mystics
Minor premiers	Queensland Firebirds
Season MVP	Leana de Bruin Natalie Medhurst
Top scorer	Romelda Aiken (Firebirds)
Adjacent seasons
← 2010	2012 →

The 2011 ANZ Championship season was the fourth season of the ANZ Championship in Australasia, commencing on 13 February. The 2011 season started much earlier in the year compared with previous seasons, to accommodate the 2011 Netball World Championships in July. The condensed season comprised 69 matches played over 15 weeks, including an initial 12-week round-robin stage, followed by a three-week finals stage. Several rule changes have also been implemented in 2011.

At the completion of the round-robin competition, the Firebirds emerged undefeated as minor premiers, progressing to the finals stage with the Magic, Swifts and Mystics. The Firebirds progressed to the grand final to face the Mystics after the Mystics defeated the Swifts and Magic in successive weeks. The grand final was contested on 22 May in Brisbane and in front of a capacity crowd, the Firebirds defeated the Mystics by 57–44 to emerge as champions for the 2011 season, successfully completing a perfect season in the process.

Overview

Format

Due to the World Netball Championships in July, the 2011 season was condensed into 15 weeks. The regular season was conducted in a round-robin, played over 12 weeks, during which each team played every other team once, and also played teams from their home country a second time. As a result of the condensed season, teams generally did not have byes in 2011, and in some rounds also had to play "double-header" matches.^[1] The top four teams from the round-robin stage progressed to the finals stage, played over three weeks in a Page-McIntyre System.

Round 3 matchups in 2010 were identical to round 5 matchups in 2011, round 5 matchups in 2010 were identical to round 4 matchups in 2011, round 12 matchups in 2010 were identical to round 9 matchups in 2011, round 13 matchups in 2010 were identical to round 12 matchups in 2011, and round 14 matchups in 2010 were identical to round 11 matchups in 2011. Also, for the Rivalry Round, round 4 matchups in 2010 were identical to round 7 matchups in 2011. In addition, in trans-Tasman matches the home and away teams were switched around from 2010 to ensure that the teams get to play home and away games over two years: e.g., the Fever hosted the Tactix in round 2 in 2010, but the same game in 2011 was hosted by the Tactix.

Rules

Matches are played under international netball rules. The 2011 season saw the implementation of new player import rules for all teams. Previously, Australian teams were allowed two import or "ineligible" players as of right, while New Zealand teams were allowed one import and one ineligible player, with the approval of Netball New Zealand. In 2011, all teams were allowed one import player as of right, and were able to apply for another ineligible player. In addition, the assistance package for teams finishing in the bottom two placings of the competition ladder for two consecutive seasons was discontinued.^[2]

For the first time this season, three all-Australian matches were umpired by two New Zealand umpires, and three all–New Zealand matches were umpired by Australian umpires. Previously, all-Australian matches were umpired by Australian umpires and all–New Zealand matches were umpired by New Zealand umpires.^[3]

Teams

All ten teams from the inaugural season continued in 2011.

Teams		Seasons	Main venues	2010 placings
2011 ANZ Championship teams
Australia	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Details	ETSA Park, Adelaide	Champions
	Melbourne Vixens	Details	State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne	7th
	New South Wales Swifts	Details	State Sports Centre, Sydney	Preliminary finalists
	Queensland Firebirds	Details	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre	5th
	West Coast Fever	Details	Challenge Stadium, Perth	8th
New Zealand	Canterbury Tactix	Details	Westpac Arena, Christchurch	10th
	Central Pulse	Details	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington	9th
	Northern Mystics	Details	Trusts Stadium, Auckland	6th
	Southern Steel	Details	Invercargill ILT Velodrome*	Semi-finalists
	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Details	Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton	Runners-up

* The main venue for the Southern Steel – Stadium Southland in Invercargill – was severely damaged during heavy snowfall on 18 September 2010. The Steel played most of their 2011 home games at the adjoining ILT Velodrome, which did not suffer heavy damage.^[4]

Player transfers

Main article: 2011 ANZ Championship transfer period

Name	2010 Team	2011 Team
Anna Scarlett	DNP- Volleyball	Northern Mystics
Megan Dehn	Southern Steel	Northern Mystics
Julianna Naoupu	Southern Steel	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic
Caitlin Thwaites	Melbourne Vixens	Central Pulse
Jade Topia	Southern Steel	Central Pulse
Donna Wilkins	DNP- Retired	Canterbury Tactix
Kasey Evering	DNP- Jamaican import	Canterbury Tactix
Natasha Chokljat	Melbourne Vixens	Southern Steel
Paula Griffin	Central Pulse	Southern Steel
Bianca Giteau (née Franklin)	DNP- Personal reasons	Adelaide Thunderbirds
Geva Mentor	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Melbourne Vixens
Kate Beveridge	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Melbourne Vixens
Sarah Wall	Queensland Firebirds	Melbourne Vixens
Mo'onia Gerrard	Adelaide Thunderbirds	New South Wales Swifts
Ama Agbeze	Central Pulse	West Coast Fever

Pre-season

With the condensed format, the official preseason tournament – the Netball Cup – was not held in 2011. Instead, alternative tournaments and matches were organised in both countries, starting in late January.

In Sydney the New South Wales Swifts hosted the Vixens, Thunderbirds and Fever in the first preseason tournament, from 22–23 January. After two days of matches, the host team went through undefeated to win the competition.^[5] The Southern Steel hosted their annual pre-season tournament in Queenstown the following weekend, from 28–30 January. The tournament was contested by the Pulse, Tactix, Steel and Firebirds; the Swifts were initially scheduled to attend but later withdrew in favour of playing two matches in Auckland against the Mystics. After three days of competition, the Queensland Firebirds defeated the Central Pulse 50–46 in the grand final to win the 2011 tournament.^[6]

In other preseason events, the Northern Mystics played the New South Wales Swifts in two five-quarter matches in Auckland from 29–30 January. The weekend finished with both sides winning one match each: the Swifts defeating the Mystics 64–61 in the first match, followed by a 61–52 victory for the Mystics the next day.^[7] A week later, the Mystics travelled to Te Awamutu to play a one-off, five-quarter match against the Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic, on 6 February (coincidentally Waitangi Day, New Zealand's national holiday). The Magic surged ahead in the third quarter of the match, and held on to record a 62–54 win in their only preseason outing.^[8]

Regular season

Standings


Pos	Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	Diff	G%	Pts
1	Queensland Firebirds	13	13	0	758	587	+171	129.13	26
2	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	13	10	3	647	578	+69	111.94	20
3	New South Wales Swifts	13	9	4	677	606	+71	111.72	18
4	Northern Mystics	13	9	4	684	619	+65	110.50	18
5	Melbourne Vixens	13	8	5	664	610	+54	108.85	16
6	Adelaide Thunderbirds	13	5	8	662	737	-75	89.82	10
7	Southern Steel	13	4	9	533	594	-61	89.73	8
8	Central Pulse	13	3	10	599	683	-84	87.70	6
9	West Coast Fever	13	3	10	646	754	-108	85.68	6
10	Canterbury Tactix	13	1	12	621	723	-102	85.89	2
Updated on 2 May 2011 (Round 12, Game 5)

Table legend
Pos = Position Pld = Games played W = Wins (2 points) L = Losses (0 points) GF = Goals For (total goals scored) GA = Goals Against (total goals conceded) Diff = Goal Difference (= GF−GA) G% = Goal Percentage (= 100 × GF/GA) Pts = Points (progressive tally) Major semi-final qualifying position Minor semi-final qualifying position

Round 1

Sun 13 February	New South Wales Swifts	60 – 40	Adelaide Thunderbirds	State Sports Centre, Sydney
12:20 (UTC+13)	Cox 22/29 (76%) Dziwoki 11/11 (100%) Pratley 27/27 (100%)	Report Stats	Bell 5/8 (63%) Borrego 31/35 (89%) Giteau 4/6 (67%)

Mon 14 February	Northern Mystics	51 – 34	Southern Steel	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
19:40 (UTC+11)	Latu 30/35 (86%) Tutaia 21/29 (72%)	Report Stats	Dalton 6/6 (100%) Griffin 16/21 (76%) TP Selby-Rickit 12/20 (60%)

Round 2

Sat 19 February	Central Pulse	44 – 54	Northern Mystics	Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
16:20 UTC+13	Amaru-Tibble 3/5 (60%) Bellringer 14/20 (70%) Thwaites 27/35 (77%)	Report Stats	Latu 36/36 (100%) Mes 0/2 (0%) Tutaia 18/23 (78%)

Sun 20 February	Adelaide Thunderbirds	47 – 65	Melbourne Vixens	ETSA Park, Adelaide
13:50 (UTC+10:30)	Bell 8/13 (62%) Borrego 35/40 (88%) Giteau 4/4 (100%)	Report Stats	Beveridge 39/47 (83%) McMahon 26/30 (87%)

Sun 20 February	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	51 – 36	Southern Steel	Energy Events Centre, Rotorua
18:20 (UTC+13)	Gupwell 3/6 (50%) Naoupu 12/17 (71%) van Dyk 36/40 (90%)	Report Stats	Griffin 20/24 (83%) Wipiiti 16/23 (70%)

Mon 21 February	Canterbury Tactix	48 – 54	West Coast Fever	CBS Canterbury Arena, Christchurch
19:40 (UTC+13)	Halpenny 22/26 (85%) Wilkins 26/32 (81%)	Report Stats	Bassett 38/41 (93%) Howard 7/8 (88%) Shoard 9/9 (100%)

Mon 21 February	Queensland Firebirds	51 – 48	New South Wales Swifts	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
18:40 (UTC+10)	Aiken 28/37 (76%) Medhurst 23/26 (88%)	Report Stats	Cox 27/34 (79%) Pratley 21/25 (84%)

Round 3

Thu 24 February	Northern Mystics	39 – 45	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
19:40 (UTC+13)	Latu 22/27 (81%) Tutaia 17/27 (63%)	Report Stats	Gupwell 9/13 (69%) Naoupu 7/12 (58%) van Dyk 29/33 (88%)

Thu 24 February	West Coast Fever	53 – 72	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Challenge Stadium, Perth
19:10 (UTC+8)	Bassett 49/53 (92%) Howard 1/1 (100%) Shoard 3/6 (50%)	Report Stats	Bell 16/23 (70%) Borrego 50/53 (94%) Giteau 6/6 (100%) Lange 0/2 (0%)

Sat 26 February	Central Pulse	43 – 45	Southern Steel	Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
14:20 (UTC+13)	Amaru-Tibble 1/3 (33%) Bellringer 13/22 (59%) Thwaites 29/36 (81%)	Report Stats	Griffin 16/21 (76%) Wipiiti 29/35 (83%)

Sat 26 February	Queensland Firebirds	64 – 41	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
13:20 (UTC+10)	Aiken 50/54 (93%) Medhurst 13/18 (72%) Pitman 1/3 (33%)	Report Stats	Bell 6/10 (60%) Borrego 30/34 (88%) Giteau 5/6 (83%)

Sun 27 February	New South Wales Swifts	45 – 49	Melbourne Vixens	State Sports Centre, Sydney
14:20 (UTC+11)	Cox 11/15 (73%) Dziwoki 14/16 (88%) Pratley 20/26 (77%)	Report Stats	Beveridge 29/38 (76%) McMahon 20/25 (80%)

Thu 7 April*	Canterbury Tactix	45 – 58	Northern Mystics	Vector Arena, Auckland
19:30 (UTC+12)	Halpenny 2/4 (50%) Thompson 11/17 (65%) Wilkins 32/35 (91%)	Report Stats	Latu 29/32 (91%) Mes 6/8 (75%) Tutaia 23/30 (77%)	Attendance: 5,000^[9]

Mon 28 February	Central Pulse	44 – 46	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington
19:40 (UTC+13)	Bellringer 17/27 (63%) Thwaites 27/33 (82%)	Report Stats	Gupwell 5/7 (71%) Naoupu 9/11 (82%) van Dyk 32/36 (89%)

Mon 28 February	West Coast Fever	38 – 62	Queensland Firebirds	Challenge Stadium, Perth
19:10 (UTC+8)	Bassett 30/35 (86%) Howard 3/3 (100%) Shoard 5/11 (45%)	Report Stats	Aiken 20/25 (80%) Medhurst 39/45 (87%) Wells 3/4 (75%)

* Originally scheduled for 27 February, but postponed due to the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.^[10] Subsequently rescheduled and moved to Auckland as a fundraiser match.^[11]

Round 4

Sat 5 March	Adelaide Thunderbirds	51 – 41	Central Pulse	ETSA Park, Adelaide
13:50 (UTC+10:30)	Bell 14/20 (70%) Borrego 37/44 (84%)	Report Stats	Bellringer 14/17 (82%) Thwaites 27/31 (87%)

Sun 6 March	Queensland Firebirds	51 – 36	Southern Steel	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
13:20 (UTC+10)	Aiken 30/36 (83%) Medhurst 21/24 (88%)	Report Stats	Griffin 15/22 (68%) Wipiiti 21/26 (81%)

Sun 6 March	Northern Mystics	56 – 54	Melbourne Vixens	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
18:20 (UTC+13)	Dehn 5/6 (83%) Latu 40/42 (95%) Tutaia 11/16 (69%)	Report Stats	Beveridge 29/37 (78%) McMahon 25/30 (83%)

Mon 7 March	Canterbury Tactix	56 – 63	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Energy Events Centre, Rotorua*
19:40 (UTC+13)	Halpenny 11/17 (65%) Thompson 15/18 (83%) Wilkins 30/35 (86%)	Q4: 47–47 Report Stats	Naoupu 37/40 (93%) van Dyk 26/27 (96%)

Mon 7 March	New South Wales Swifts	55 – 51	West Coast Fever	State Sports Centre, Sydney
19:40 (UTC+11)	Cox 22/38 (58%) Pratley 33/40 (83%)	Report Stats	Bassett 43/50 (86%) Shoard 8/12 (67%)

* Originally scheduled to be played in Christchurch. Following the 22 February earthquake, the match was moved to Rotorua, although the match is still considered a "home" game for the Tactix.^[12]

Round 5

Sat 12 March	Melbourne Vixens	70 – 39	West Coast Fever	State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne
14:20 (UTC+11)	Beveridge 17/23 (74%) Caldwell 19/21 (90%) Knott 5/6 (83%) McMahon 29/35 (83%)	Report Stats	Bassett 21/25 (84%) Howard 12/15 (80%) Shoard 6/8 (75%)

Sun 13 March	Adelaide Thunderbirds	42 – 64	Queensland Firebirds	ETSA Park, Adelaide
13:50 (UTC+10:30)	Bell 31/34 (91%) Borrego 2/2 (100%) Giteau 6/11 (55%) Lange 3/5 (60%)	Report Stats	Aiken 39/47 (83%) Medhurst 25/27 (93%)

Sun 13 March	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	46 – 47	Northern Mystics	Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton
18:20 (UTC+13)	Naoupu 20/31 (65%) van Dyk 26/31 (84%)	Report Stats	Dehn 3/5 (60%) Latu 23/26 (88%) Tutaia 21/23 (91%)

Mon 14 March	Southern Steel	50 – 44	Central Pulse	Invercargill ILT Velodrome
19:40 (UTC+13)	Griffin 29/34 (85%) Wipiiti 21/27 (78%)	Report Stats	Bellringer 18/24 (75%) Thwaites 26/30 (87%)

Mon 14 March	New South Wales Swifts	54 – 45	Canterbury Tactix	State Sports Centre, Sydney
19:40 (UTC+11)	Cox 27/37 (73%) Pratley 17/20 (85%) Wild 10/12 (83%)	Report Stats	Halpenny 21/25 (84%) Wilkins 24/25 (96%)

Round 6

Thu 17 March	West Coast Fever	49 – 70	New South Wales Swifts	Challenge Stadium, Perth
19:10 (UTC+8)	Bassett 30/34 (88%) Shoard 19/24 (79%)	Report Stats	Cox 29/35 (83%) Dziwoki 14/15 (93%) Pratley 27/31 (87%)

Sat 19 March	West Coast Fever	50 – 47	Southern Steel	Challenge Stadium, Perth
12:50 (UTC+8)	Bassett 39/41 (95%) Shoard 11/16 (69%)	Report Stats	Brown 9/11 (82%) Griffin 7/9 (78%) Wipiiti 31/39 (79%)

Sun 20 March	New South Wales Swifts	53 – 57	Queensland Firebirds	State Sports Centre, Sydney
14:20 (UTC+11)	Cox 31/36 (86%) Pratley 22/25 (88%)	Report Stats	Aiken 37/43 (86%) Medhurst 20/25 (80%)

Sun 20 March	Central Pulse	46 – 43	Canterbury Tactix	Arena Manawatu, Palmerston North
18:20 (UTC+13)	Bellringer 16/23 (70%) Thwaites 30/34 (88%)	Report Stats	Halpenny 9/14 (64%) Thompson 10/13 (77%) Wilkins 24/28 (86%)

Mon 21 March	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	53 – 41	Melbourne Vixens	Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton
19:40 (UTC+13)	Naoupu 22/27 (81%) van Dyk 31/36 (86%)	Report Stats	Beveridge 4/5 (80%) Caldwell 13/20 (65%) McMahon 24/27 (89%)

Mon 21 March	Adelaide Thunderbirds	57 – 55	Northern Mystics	ETSA Park, Adelaide
19:10 (UTC+10:30)	Bell 21/24 (88%) Borrego 36/41 (88%)	Report Stats	Latu 29/31 (94%) Tutaia 26/31 (84%)

Round 7: Rivalry Round

All matches in this round were trans-Tasman clashes. Goals scored by all teams from each country were tallied together, with the country accumulating the highest number of goals winning the round. After five matches, Australia won the 2011 Rivalry Round with an aggregate score of 263–239 over New Zealand.^[13]

Sat 26 March	Northern Mystics	52 – 61	Queensland Firebirds	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
16:20 (UTC+13)	Latu 19/19 (100%) Tutaia 33/38 (87%)	Report Stats	Aiken 38/43 (88%) Medhurst 23/26 (88%)

Sun 27 March	Melbourne Vixens	65 – 50	Canterbury Tactix	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
14:20 (UTC+11)	Beveridge 33/40 (83%) McMahon 32/35 (91%)	Report Stats	Thompson 17/26 (65%) Wilkins 33/38 (87%)

Sun 27 March	Central Pulse	43 – 48	New South Wales Swifts	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington
18:20 (UTC+13)	Amaru-Tibble 2/2 (100%) Bellringer 8/15 (53%) Thwaites 33/43 (77%)	Report Stats	Cox 23/32 (72%) Pratley 25/29 (86%)

Mon 28 March	Southern Steel	52 – 48	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Invercargill ILT Velodrome
19:40 (UTC+13)	Griffin 21/23 (91%) Wipiiti 31/36 (86%)	Report Stats	Bell 17/18 (94%) Borrego 31/34 (91%)

Mon 28 March	West Coast Fever	41 – 42	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Challenge Stadium, Perth
19:10 (UTC+8)	Bassett 23/33 (70%) Howard 13/16 (81%) Shoard 5/10 (50%)	Report Stats	Naoupu 17/23 (74%) van Dyk 25/26 (96%)

Round 8

Daylight savings ends on 3 April in New Zealand, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.

Thu 31 March	Canterbury Tactix	49 – 44	Southern Steel	CBS Canterbury Arena, Christchurch
19:40 (UTC+13)	Thompson 20/23 (87%) Wilkins 29/31 (94%)	Report Stats	Griffin 33/38 (87%) Wipiiti 11/14 (79%)	Attendance: 5,124^[14]

Thu 31 March	Melbourne Vixens	42 – 52	Queensland Firebirds	State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne
19:40 (UTC+11)	Beveridge 15/26 (58%) Knott 16/19 (84%) McMahon 11/14 (79%)	Report Stats	Aiken 31/38 (82%) Medhurst 21/27 (78%)

Sat 2 April	Northern Mystics	61 – 48	Central Pulse	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
16:20 (UTC+13)	Dehn 7/8 (88%) Latu 42/42 (100%) Tutaia 12/14 (86%)	Report Stats	Amaru-Tibble 4/6 (67%) Bellringer 9/18 (50%) Cassidy 1/1 (100%) Thwaites 34/42 (81%)

Sun 3 April	Melbourne Vixens	42 – 33	Southern Steel	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
14:20 (UTC+10)	Beveridge 23/26 (88%) Caldwell 19/20 (95%)	Report Stats	Griffin 17/28 (61%) Wipiiti 16/22 (73%)

Sun 3 April	Canterbury Tactix	56 – 59	Adelaide Thunderbirds	CBS Canterbury Arena, Christchurch
18:20 (UTC+12)	Thompson 24/33 (73%) Wilkins 32/35 (91%)	Report Stats	Bell 15/18 (83%) Borrego 44/48 (92%)

Mon 4 April	Central Pulse	63 – 61	West Coast Fever	Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
19:40 (UTC+12)	Bellringer 16/20 (80%) Thwaites 47/60 (78%)	Q4: 48–48 Report Stats	Bassett 47/52 (90%) Howard 12/17 (71%) Shoard 2/3 (67%)

Mon 4 April	Queensland Firebirds	53 – 49	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
19:40 (UTC+10)	Aiken 36/39 (92%) Medhurst 17/21 (81%)	Report Stats	Naoupu 24/29 (83%) van Dyk 25/26 (96%)

Round 9

Sat 9 April	Southern Steel	49 – 40	Canterbury Tactix	Edgar Centre, Dunedin
16:20 (UTC+12)	Griffin 34/39 (87%) Wipiiti 15/22 (68%)	Report Stats	Thompson 17/20 (85%) Wilkins 23/26 (88%)

Sun 10 April	Melbourne Vixens	55 – 53	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
14:20 (UTC+10)	Beveridge 22/27 (81%) Caldwell 33/36 (92%)	Report Stats	Borrrego 37/40 (93%) Bell 15/19 (79%) Lange 1/1 (100%)

Sun 10 April	Central Pulse	44 – 61	Queensland Firebirds	Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
18:20 (UTC+12)	Thwaites 35/44 (80%) Cassidy 3/6 (50%) Bellringer 6/11 (55%)	Report Stats	Aiken 37/44 (84%) Medhurst 24/29 (83%)

Mon 11 April	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	46 – 53	New South Wales Swifts	Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, Tauranga
19:40 (UTC+12)	van Dyk 28/30 (93%) Gupwell 10/13 (77%) Naoupu 8/8 (100%)	Report Stats	Cox 31/36 (86%) Wild 3/4 (75%) Pratley 19/26 (73%)

Mon 11 April	West Coast Fever	54 – 56	Northern Mystics	Challenge Stadium, Perth
17:40 (UTC+8)	Bassett 41/44 (93%) Shoard 13/17 (76%)	Report Stats	Latu 30/35 (86%) Tutaia 26/35 (74%)

Round 10

Thu 14 April	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	53 – 49	Canterbury Tactix	Energy Events Centre, Rotorua
19:40 (UTC+12)	Gupwell 4/5 (80%) Naoupu 14/19 (74%) van Dyk 35/36 (97%)	Report Stats	Thompson 19/24 (79%) Wilkins 30/30 (100%)

Thu 14 April	Queensland Firebirds	57 – 36	Melbourne Vixens	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
19:40 (UTC+10)	Aiken 35/42 (83%) Medhurst 22/30 (73%) Wells 0/2 (0%)	Report Stats	Beveridge 24/32 (75%) Caldwell 11/17 (65%) Tregear 1/2 (50%)

Sat 16 April	Adelaide Thunderbirds	57 – 53	New South Wales Swifts	ETSA Park, Adelaide
13:50 (UTC+9:30)	Bell 19/23 (83%) Borrego 38/40 (95%)	Report Stats	Cox 34/40 (85%) Dziwoki 3/3 (100%) Pratley 16/24 (67%)

Sun 17 April	West Coast Fever	38 – 54	Melbourne Vixens	Challenge Stadium, Perth
12:20 (UTC+8)	Bassett 30/36 (83%) Howard 7/12 (58%) Shoard 1/5 (20%)	Report Stats	Caldwell 37/50 (74%) Beveridge 17/24 (71%)

Sun 17 April	Southern Steel	33 – 38	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Invercargill ILT Velodrome
18:20 (UTC+12)	Griffin 24/26 (92%) Wipiiti 9/14 (64%)	Report Stats	Gupwell 3/7 (43%) Naoupu 6/11 (55%) van Dyk 29/30 (97%)

Mon 18 April	Canterbury Tactix	45 – 47	Central Pulse	CBS Canterbury Arena, Christchurch
19:40 (UTC+12)	Thompson 24/28 (86%) Wilkins 21/24 (88%)	Report Stats	Cassidy 8/13 (62%) Thwaites 39/47 (83%)

Mon 18 April	New South Wales Swifts	53 – 46	Northern Mystics	State Sports Centre, Sydney
19:40 (UTC+10)	Cox 37/48 (77%) Pratley 16/23 (70%)	Report Stats	Dehn 2/2 (100%) Latu 17/17 (100%) Mes 1/4 (25%) Tutaia 26/29 (90%)

Round 11

Thu 21 April	Southern Steel	39 – 40	New South Wales Swifts	Edgar Centre, Dunedin
19:40 (UTC+12)	Griffin 16/23 (70%) Wipiiti 23/35 (66%)	Report Stats	Cox 25/33 (76%) Pratley 15/19 (79%)

Sat 23 April	Melbourne Vixens	58 – 42	Central Pulse	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
14:20 (UTC+10)	Knott 10/11 (91%) Beveridge 25/30 (83%) Caldwell 23/26 (88%)	Report Stats	Thwaites 37/50 (74%) Cassidy 4/5 (80%) Bellringer 1/2 (50%)

Sun 24 April	Adelaide Thunderbirds	36 – 55	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	ETSA Park, Adelaide
13:20 (UTC+9:30)	Bell 22/26 (85%) Giteau 8/12 (67%) Borrego 6/10 (60%)	Report Stats	van Dyk 43/47 (91%) Gupwell 0/1 (0%) Naoupu 12/17 (71%)

Sun 24 April	Northern Mystics	62 – 43	Canterbury Tactix	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
18:20 (UTC+12)	Latu 45/48 (94%) Tutaia 17/23 (74%)	Report Stats	Halpenny 2/3 (67%) Thompson 22/28 (79%) Wilkins 19/22 (86%)

Mon 25 April	Queensland Firebirds	56 – 54	West Coast Fever	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
19:40 (UTC+10)	Aiken 26/31 (84%) Medhurst 30/36 (83%)	Report Stats	Bassett 37/39 (95%) Howard 4/4 (100%) Shoard 13/17 (76%)

Round 12

Sat 30 April	Canterbury Tactix	52 – 69	Queensland Firebirds	CBS Canterbury Arena, Christchurch
16:20 (UTC+12)	Halpenny 26/35 (74%) Wilkins 26/35 (74%)	Report Stats	Aiken 50/55 (91%) Medhurst 19/21 (90%)

Sun 1 May	Melbourne Vixens	33 – 45	New South Wales Swifts	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
14:20 (UTC+10)	Beveridge 8/14 (57%) Caldwell 16/21 (76%) Knott 9/14 (64%)	Report Stats	Cox 33/42 (79%) Pratley 12/15 (80%)

Sun 1 May	Southern Steel	35 – 47	Northern Mystics	Invercargill ILT Velodrome
18:20 (UTC+12)	Griffin 22/30 (73%) TP Selby-Rickit 4/6 (67%) Wipiiti 9/19 (47%)	Report Stats	Latu 27/27 (100%) Tutaia 20/32 (63%)

Mon 2 May	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	60 – 50	Central Pulse	Taupo Events Centre
19:40 (UTC+12)	Gupwell 0/1 (0%) Naoupu 22/25 (88%) van Dyk 37/39 (95%) Wall 1/2 (50%)	Report Stats	Bellringer 9/12 (75%) Cassidy 1/4 (25%) Leaver 0/1 (0%) Thwaites 40/46 (87%)

Mon 2 May	Adelaide Thunderbirds	59 – 64	West Coast Fever	ETSA Park, Adelaide
19:10 (UTC+9:30)	Borrego 32/38 (84%) Bell 27/34 (79%)	Report Stats	Bassett 50/54 (93%) Howard 2/3 (67%) Shoard 12/17 (71%)

Finals

Semi-finals				Preliminary final					Grand final

9 May – Gold Coast
1.	Queensland Firebirds	50
2.	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	39
				15 May – Hamilton					22 May – Brisbane
				Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic		42			Queensland Firebirds	57
					Northern Mystics		43			Northern Mystics	44
8 May – Sydney
3.	New South Wales Swifts	44
4.	Northern Mystics	49	Key:		Winning team advances			Losing team advances

Minor semi-final Sunday 8 May 14:20 (UTC+10)	New South Wales Swifts	44 – 49 Report Stats	Northern Mystics	State Sports Centre, Sydney Umpires: Rachael Ayre (Australia), Mandy Nottingham (New Zealand) Reserve umpire: Jemma Carlton (Australia)
	Cox 28/36 (78%) Wild 8/8 (100%) Pratley 8/10 (80%)		Latu 25/28 (89%) Tutaia 24/29 (83%)

Major semi-final Monday 9 May 19:40 (UTC+10)	Queensland Firebirds	50 – 39 Report Stats	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre
	Aiken 29/33 (88%) Medhurst 21/27 (78%)		van Dyk 17/19 (89%) Gupwell 16/18 (89%) Naoupu 6/8 (75%)

Preliminary final Sunday 15 May 18:20 (UTC+12)	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	42 – 43 Report Stats	Northern Mystics	Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton
	van Dyk 27/28 (96%) Naoupu 14/19 (74%) Gupwell 1/3 (33%)		Latu 15/17 (88%) Tutaia 28/30 (93%)

Grand final Sunday 22 May 14:30 (UTC+10)	Queensland Firebirds	57 – 44 Report Stats	Northern Mystics	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre Umpires: Sharon Kelly (Australia), Mandy Nottingham (New Zealand) Reserve umpire: Rachael Ayre (Australia)
	Aiken 35/40 (88%) Medhurst 22/24 (92%)		Latu 21/21 (100%) Tutaia 23/31 (74%)

Festival of the Stars

The Festival of the Stars is a charity match where two celebrity teams play each other to win money for their charities. The captains of the match in 2011 were Adam Spencer and Charlie Pickering. The match was played in two 15-minute halves and umpired by former Australian representatives Alison Broadbent and Shelley O'Donnell. The show was hosted by Kelli Underwood and Liz Ellis with Sue Gaudion the courtside expert. The celebrity teams were as follows:

beyondblue Team:

Charlie Pickering - The 7pm Project (captain, GA)
Andrew Reid - Bondi Rescue lifeguard (GD)
Gus Worland - Triple M breakfast presenter (WD)
Shannon Eckstein - Iron Man (GS)
Paulini Curuenavuli - singer (DNP)
Charlotte Dawson - Australia's Next Top Model judge (GK)
Summer Burke - TEN news presenter (WA)
James Kerley - Nova and former TEN presenter (C)

Holden Barina Spark National Breast Cancer Foundation Team

Adam Spencer - comedian, ABC presenter (captain, GA)
Natarsha Belling - TEN news presenter (WA)
Guy Leech - Iron Man Legend (WD)
Matt Poole - Iron Man (GK)
Kerri Pottharst - Olympic Gold Medallist (GS)
Laura Dundovic - former Miss Universe Australia (C)
Dean Gladstone - Bondi Rescue lifeguard (GD)

	Festival of the Stars
Sunday 20 March 12:00 (UTC+10)	beyondblue	9 – 10	Holden Barina Spark National Breast Cancer Foundation	Acer Arena Umpires: Alison Broadbent, Shelley O'Donnell
Sunday 20 March 12:00 (UTC+10)	Eckstein (7 goals) Pickering (2 goals)	9 – 10	Pottharst (9 goals) Spencer (1 goal)	Acer Arena Umpires: Alison Broadbent, Shelley O'Donnell

Season statistics

As of Sunday 22 May.^[15]

Top 5 Goals scored
Pos.	Player	Team	GS	GA	G%
1	Romelda Aiken	Queensland Firebirds	523	607	86.2
2	Caitlin Bassett	West Coast Fever	478	538	88.8
3	Cathrine Latu	Northern Mystics	449	482	93.2
4	Irene van Dyk	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	446	485	92.0
5	Caitlin Thwaites	Central Pulse	431	530	81.3

Top 5 Goal assists
Pos.	Player	Team	G/A
1	Kimberlee Green	New South Wales Swifts	197
2	Temepara George	Northern Mystics	195
3	Madison Browne	Melbourne Vixens	179
4	Laura Langman	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	148
5	Natalie Medhurst	Queensland Firebirds	141

Top 5 Rebounds
Pos.	Player	Team	Reb.
1	Romelda Aiken	Queensland Firebirds	63
2	Cathrine Latu	Northern Mystics	42
3	Laura Geitz	Queensland Firebirds	41
4	Casey Williams	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	40
5	Irene van Dyk	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	37

Top 5 Centre-pass receives
Pos.	Player	Team	CPR
1	Leah Shoard	West Coast Fever	263
2	Natalie Medhurst	Queensland Firebirds	256
3	Chelsea Pitman	Queensland Firebirds	250
4	Maria Tutaia	Northern Mystics	228
5	Emily Beaton	Adelaide Thunderbirds	214

Top 5 Intercepts
Pos.	Player	Team	Int.
1	Laura Geitz	Queensland Firebirds	57
2=	Casey Williams	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	33
2=	Anna Scarlett	Northern Mystics	33
4=	Leana de Bruin	Southern Steel	30
4=	Sonia Mkoloma	New South Wales Swifts	30

Top 5 Deflections
Pos.	Player	Team	Defl.
1	Laura Geitz	Queensland Firebirds	92
2	Anna Scarlett	Northern Mystics	91
3	Leana de Bruin	Southern Steel	85
4	Casey Williams	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	70
5=	Bianca Chatfield	Melbourne Vixens	53
5=	Katrina Grant	Central Pulse	53

Top 5 Penalties
Pos.	Player	Team	Pen.
1	Laura Geitz	Queensland Firebirds	264
2	Anna Scarlett	Northern Mystics	245
3	Susan Fuhrmann	West Coast Fever	231
4	Casey Williams	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	222
5	Bianca Chatfield	Melbourne Vixens	202

Top 5 Turnovers
Pos.	Player	Team	Turn.
1	Cathrine Latu	Northern Mystics	81
2	Temepara George	Northern Mystics	68
3	Romelda Aiken	Queensland Firebirds	59
4	Erin Bell	Adelaide Thunderbirds	50
5	Maree Bowden	Canterbury Tactix	49

Awards

Season MVP

Players were nominated during the round-robin matches for the 2011 ANZ Championship season's Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. The five players with the highest nomination points are listed in the table below. The eventual joint winners of the award are highlighted in green.

2011 Most Valuable Player
Nat.	Player	Team	Points
	Leana de Bruin	Southern Steel	18
	Natalie Medhurst	Queensland Firebirds	18
	Romelda Aiken	Queensland Firebirds	16
	Caitlin Bassett	West Coast Fever	16
	Natalie von Bertouch	Adelaide Thunderbirds	16

Best Young Player Award

Five players were nominated for the 2011 ANZ Championship season's Best Young Player award, during rounds 8–12. All nominees are listed in the table below. The 2011 winner is highlighted in green.

2011 Best Young Player
Nat.	Player	Team	Round
	Chelsea Pitman	Queensland Firebirds	8
	Sulu Tone-Fitzpatrick	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	9
	Ashleigh Brazill	New South Wales Swifts	10
	Kayla Cullen	Northern Mystics	11
	Kate Shimmin	Adelaide Thunderbirds	12

All Star Team

The 2011 season saw the first appearance of a season All-Star team. A panel of four netball commentators and writers (Liz Ellis and Warren Partland from Australia, Tania Dalton and Dana Johannsen from New Zealand) selected the best player in each position, as well as the team's coach.

2011 All Star team^[16]
Pos.	Name	Team
GS	Romelda Aiken	Queensland Firebirds
GA	Sharelle McMahon	Melbourne Vixens
WA	Emily Beaton	Adelaide Thunderbirds
C	Natalie von Bertouch	Adelaide Thunderbirds
WD	Kayla Cullen	Northern Mystics
GD	Anna Scarlett	Northern Mystics
GK	Leana de Bruin	Southern Steel
Coach	Roselee Jencke	Queensland Firebirds

References

^ AAP (2010-06-03). "Wilson blasts netball double-headers". TVNZ. http://tvnz.co.nz/netball-news/wilson-blasts-netball-double-headers-3578503?cfb3=3. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
^ Longley, Geoff (2010-07-23). "Overseas-player change hailed by Tactix". The Press. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/netball/3949018/Overseas-player-change-hailed-by-Tactix. Retrieved 2010-07-23.
^ "TTNL announces changes to Umpiring appointments". 2011-01-19. http://www.anz-championship.com/news/a/ttnl-announces-changes-to-umpiring-appointments/567.
^ "Steel confirmed for velodrome". The Southland Times. 2010-10-22. http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/sport/4264426/Steel-confirmed-for-velodrome. Retrieved 2010-11-15.
^ "Swifts and Vixens show early form in pre-season warm-up matches". ANZ Championship website. 24 January 2011. http://www.anz-championship.com/news/a/swifts-and-vixens-show-early-form-in-pre-season-warm-up-matches/569. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
^ NZPA (31 January 2011). "Queensland Firebirds with preseason tournament". Stuff.co.nz. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/netball/4598953/Queensland-Firebirds-win-Queenstown-tournament. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
^ Johannsen, Dana (31 January 2011). "Big guns happy with Mystics hitouts". The New Zealand Herald. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10703119. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
^ Evans, Ryan (7 February 2011). "Waikato-BOP Magic chalk up first preseason win". Waikato Times. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/netball/4626276/Magic-chalk-up-first-win-of-season. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
^ ONE Sport (7 April 2011). "Mystics down Tactix at Vector". TVNZ. http://tvnz.co.nz/netball-news/mystics-down-tactix-vector-4108317. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
^ NZPA (22 February 2011). "Tactix match postponed due to earthquake". TVNZ. http://tvnz.co.nz/netball-news/tactix-match-postponed-due-earthquake-4038575. Retrieved 22 February 2011.
^ NZPA (23 March 2011). "Tactix to play fundraising match in Auckland". Stuff.co.nz. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/netball/4802533/Tactix-to-play-fundraising-match. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
^ NZPA (28 February 2011). "Tactix to play 'home' match in Rotorua". TVNZ. http://tvnz.co.nz/netball-news/tactix-play-home-match-in-rotorua-4042421. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
^ Avellino, Natalie (31 March 2011). "Aussies win national pride round". Stuff.co.nz. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/opinion/4829658/Aussies-win-national-pride-round. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
^ Richens, Matt (1 April 2011). "Tears flow as Canterbury Tactix end drought". The Press. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/sport/4834956/Tears-flow-as-Canterbury-Tactix-end-drought/. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
^ "2011 ANZ Championship statistics". ANZ Championship website. http://www.anz-championship.com/matches/statistics.asp. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
^ NZPA (11 May 2011). "Three NZ players in netball all-star team". Stuff.co.nz. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/netball/4987798/Three-NZ-players-in-netball-all-star-team. Retrieved 11 May 2011.

ANZ Championship

Teams	Australia: NSW Swifts · Melbourne Vixens · Queensland Firebirds · Adelaide Thunderbirds · West Coast Fever New Zealand: Northern Mystics · Waikato BoP Magic · Central Pulse · Canterbury Tactix · Southern Steel

Organising bodies	Netball Australia · Netball New Zealand

Former competitions	Commonwealth Bank Trophy (Australia) · National Bank Cup (New Zealand)

Seasons	2008 · 2009 · 2010 · 2011 · 2012

Website: www.anz-championship.com


Main season • Transfer period • Standings
Australia	Queensland Firebirds	NSW Swifts	Melbourne Vixens	Adelaide Thunderbirds	West Coast Fever
New Zealand	Northern Mystics	WBoP Magic	Central Pulse	Canterbury Tactix	Southern Steel