2009 ANZ Championship season

2009 ANZ Championship season
League	ANZ Championship
Sport	Netball
Duration	4 April 2009 - 26 July 2009
Number of teams	10
TV partner(s)	One HD (Australia, all games) Network Ten (Australia, one live game a week) SKY Sports (New Zealand, live) TVNZ (New Zealand, delayed)
Champions	Melbourne Vixens
Runners-up	Adelaide Thunderbirds
Minor premiers	Melbourne Vixens
Season MVP	Romelda Aiken (Firebirds)

The 2009 ANZ Championship season was the second season of the ANZ Championship, commencing on 4 April 2009. The 2009 season comprised 69 matches played over 17 weeks. The format of the competition was unchanged from last year, starting with a 14-week round robin followed by a three-week finals series. After a very hectic transfer season, teams were confirmed and the competition began.

The top four teams from the round-robin stage progressed to the finals stage. The Melbourne Vixens finished the round robin as minor premiers, followed by the Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic, Adelaide Thunderbirds and Southern Steel.

The grand final was played on Sunday 26 July at Hisense Arena in Melbourne, contested between the Vixens and Thunderbirds. The Melbourne Vixens emerged as champions for the 2009 season after defeating the Thunderbirds by 54–46.

Format

The format of the 2009 season is identical to that of the 2008 season.^[1] During the round-robin stage, played over 14 weeks, each team played every other team once, and played teams from their home country a second time, with one bye somewhere between Rounds 5–9. The top four teams from the round-robin stage progressed to the finals stage, played over three weeks in a Page-McIntyre System.

Round 1 matchups in 2008 were identical to the round 14 matchups in 2009. In addition, in trans-Tasman matches the home and away teams are switched around from 2008 to ensure that the teams get to play home and away games over two years: e.g., the Swifts hosted the Magic in round 3 in 2008, but the same game in 2009 will be hosted by the Magic. The 2009 season featured a "Rivalry Round" in Week 13, in which all matches were contested between teams from Australia and New Zealand. Round 4 matchups in 2008 were identical to the matchups in "Rivalry Round". The goals scored by each country were accumulated, with Australia winning the inaugural Rivalry Round Trophy.

Transfer Season

See the 2009 Transfer Season

The 2008 Off season, saw franchises working hard to sign up the best talent in the ANZ competition, while trying to remain under the Salary Cap. Several teams including the Southern Steel, Waikato/BOP Magic and the Queensland Firebirds looked like teams that improved their rosters the most, joining the NSW Swifts, Adelaide Thunderbirds and the Melbourne Vixens with potential to win the second edition of the competition. The Steel went out to sign all the old guns, picking up its former Southern Sting star duo of former Silver Ferns Adine Wilson and Donna Wilkins, while also inking international defender Sheryl Scanlan. The Waikato/BOP Magic added to its already five current internationals players by putting star backline player Leana de Bruin in the mix also. The Canterbury Tactix signed impressive defender Sonia Mkoloma from the Central Pulse, with the Wellington-based Pulse, just replacing her with another talent, Jamaican goal keeper Althea Byfield. Things were calmer in Australia, the Queensland Firebirds remained strong on paper, resigning 2008 MVP Romelda Aiken, English import Tamsin Greenway and Australian stars Lauren Nourse and Laura Geitz. The West Coast Fever could well of bought the best future talent in the game, signing midcourters Madison Browne and Shae Bolton from the Melbourne Vixens to bolster their midcourt.

Pre-season

Swifts vs Vixens in the 2009 SOPA Cup.

The first pre-season tournament was held in Queenstown in New Zealand from 20–22 February at the Queenstown Events Centre.^[2] Several ANZ Championship teams participated, including the Steel, Mystics, Swifts and Pulse, and the Australian Institute of Sport also sent a team.^[2] The Tactix were scheduled to attend as well, but pulled out due to lack of player availability.^[3] The Mystics went through the tournament undefeated, beating defending ANZ Championship winners the Swifts 58–53 on the final day.^[4]

The official pre-season tournament is the Sydney Olympic Park Netball Cup (SOPA Cup), held in Sydney from 6–8 March. Seven ANZ Championship franchises participated in the tournament, including the Firebirds, Swifts, Vixens, Thunderbirds, Fever, Magic and Steel, along with a representative team from the Australian Institute of Sport.^[5] In a replay of last year's grand final, the Swifts and Magic fought out a close draw. By the end of the tournament, the Swifts emerged as champions, receiving a winner's prize of $10,000.^[6]

The Waipa Pre-Season Tournament was the third and last in the 2009 pre-season, held from 20–22 March at the Te AwamutuEvents Centre. This tournament featured the Magic, Mystics and Pulse from the ANZ Championship, as well as the New Zealand U21 team.^[2] Hosted by the Magic, the home team took out the tournament.^[7]

Fixtures

All listed times are local: New Zealand times are UTC+12; Queensland, New South Wales and Victorian times are UTC+10; South Australian times are UTC+9:30; and Western Australian times are UTC+8. Results in parentheses indicate tied scores at the end of regular time, with the final score after extra time given above them.

Round 1

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Southern Steel	55–46	Central Pulse	Saturday 4 April, 2:00 pm	Stadium Southland, Invercargill
Melbourne Vixens	57–44	West Coast Fever	Saturday 4 April, 2:00 pm	State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne
Queensland Firebirds	48–60	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Sunday 5 April, 2:30 pm	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
Northern Mystics	38–51	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Monday 6 April, 7:00 pm	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
New South Wales Swifts	62–45	Canterbury Tactix	Monday 6 April, 7:00 pm	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre

^ Due to daylight savings, New Zealand was UTC+13 and New South Wales and Victoria was UTC+11 during these games.

Round 2

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	54–47	Southern Steel	Saturday 11 April, 2:00 pm	Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, Tauranga
Adelaide Thunderbirds	48–47	New South Wales Swifts	Sunday 12 April, 2:00 pm	ETSA Park, Adelaide
Northern Mystics	54–50	Central Pulse	Sunday 12 April, 6:30 pm	North Shore Events Centre, Auckland
Canterbury Tactix	52–44	West Coast Fever	Monday 13 April, 7:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
Queensland Firebirds	51–54	Melbourne Vixens	Monday 13 April, 7:00 pm	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre

Round 3

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Central Pulse	46–58	Queensland Firebirds	Saturday 18 April, 2:00 pm	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington
Adelaide Thunderbirds	43–49	Melbourne Vixens	Sunday 19 April, 2:00 pm	ETSA Park, Adelaide
Southern Steel	52–48	Canterbury Tactix	Sunday 19 April, 6:30 pm	The Edgar Centre, Dunedin
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	63–45	New South Wales Swifts	Monday 20 April, 7:00 pm	Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton
West Coast Fever	57–46	Northern Mystics	Monday 20 April, 5:00 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth

Round 4

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Central Pulse	54–60	West Coast Fever	Saturday 25 April, 2:00 pm	Arena Manawatu, Palmerston North
Melbourne Vixens	48–31	Southern Steel	Saturday 25 April, 2:00 pm	State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne
Queensland Firebirds	53–42	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Sunday 26 April, 2:30 pm	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
Canterbury Tactix	48–53 (42–42)	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Monday 27 April, 7:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
New South Wales Swifts	59–55	Northern Mystics	Monday 27 April, 7:00 pm	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre

Round 5

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Canterbury Tactix	48–50	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Saturday 2 May, 2:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
Melbourne Vixens	50–42	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Sunday 3 May, 2:30 pm	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
Central Pulse	60–61 (50–50)	Northern Mystics	Monday 4 May, 7:00 pm	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington
West Coast Fever	67–66 (54–54)	New South Wales Swifts	Monday 4 May, 6:00 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth
BYES: Queensland Firebirds and Southern Steel

Round 6

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	59–36	Central Pulse	Saturday 9 May, 2:00 pm	Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton
New South Wales Swifts	40–51	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Sunday 10 May, 2:30 pm	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
Northern Mystics	52–61	Southern Steel	Monday 11 May, 7:00 pm	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
Queensland Firebirds	56–53	West Coast Fever	Monday 11 May, 7:00 pm	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
BYES: Canterbury Tactix and Melbourne Vixens

Round 7

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Canterbury Tactix	47–48	Southern Steel	Saturday 16 May, 2:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
West Coast Fever	49–74	Melbourne Vixens	Sunday 17 May, 12:30 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	50–35	Northern Mystics	Monday 18 May, 7:00 pm	Energy Events Centre, Rotorua
New South Wales Swifts	54–58	Queensland Firebirds	Monday 18 May, 7:00 pm	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
BYES: Adelaide Thunderbirds and Central Pulse

Round 8

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Canterbury Tactix	49–46	Central Pulse	Saturday 23 May, 2:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
Adelaide Thunderbirds	51–50	Queensland Firebirds	Sunday 24 May, 2:00 pm	ETSA Park, Adelaide
Southern Steel	39–48	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Monday 25 May, 7:00 pm	Stadium Southland, Invercargill
Melbourne Vixens	65–63 (54–54)	New South Wales Swifts	Monday 25 May, 7:00 pm	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
BYES: Northern Mystics and West Coast Fever

Round 9

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Central Pulse	44–66	Southern Steel	Saturday 30 May, 2:00 pm	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington
Melbourne Vixens	57–53	Queensland Firebirds	Sunday 31 May, 2:30 pm	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
Northern Mystics	47–46	Canterbury Tactix	Monday 1 June, 7:00 pm	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
West Coast Fever	41–61	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Monday 1 June, 6:00 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth
BYES: New South Wales Swifts and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic

Round 10

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Central Pulse	45–59	Canterbury Tactix	Saturday 6 June, 2:00 pm	Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
Adelaide Thunderbirds	58–34	Northern Mystics	Saturday 6 June, 1:30 pm	Adelaide Arena, Adelaide
Queensland Firebirds	62–61	New South Wales Swifts	Sunday 7 June, 2:30 pm	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	55–48	Melbourne Vixens	Monday 8 June, 7:00 pm	Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, Tauranga
West Coast Fever	59–48	Southern Steel	Monday 8 June, 5:00 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth

Round 11

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Canterbury Tactix	53–46	Queensland Firebirds	Saturday 13 June, 2:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
Adelaide Thunderbirds	58–39	West Coast Fever	Sunday 14 June, 2:00 pm	ETSA Park, Adelaide
Central Pulse	35–67	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Sunday 14 June, 6:30 pm	TSB Bank Arena, Wellington
Southern Steel	52–50	Northern Mystics	Monday 15 June, 7:00 pm	Stadium Southland, Invercargill
New South Wales Swifts	52–63	Melbourne Vixens	Monday 15 June, 7:00 pm	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre

Round 12

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Northern Mystics	57–61	Melbourne Vixens	Saturday 20 June, 2:00 pm	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
Adelaide Thunderbirds	70–40	Central Pulse	Saturday 20 June, 1:30 pm	ETSA Park, Adelaide
New South Wales Swifts	60–63	West Coast Fever	Sunday 21 June, 2:30 pm	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	50–46	Canterbury Tactix	Monday 22 June, 7:00 pm	Energy Events Centre, Rotorua
Queensland Firebirds	52–50	Southern Steel	Monday 22 June, 7:00 pm	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre

Round 13: 'Rivalry Round'

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Northern Mystics	57–59	Queensland Firebirds	Saturday 27 June, 2:00 pm	Trusts Stadium, Auckland
West Coast Fever	38–49	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Sunday 28 June, 12:30 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth
Central Pulse	53–52	New South Wales Swifts	Sunday 28 June, 6:30 pm	Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
Southern Steel	58–49	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Monday 29 June, 7:00 pm	The Edgar Centre, Dunedin
Melbourne Vixens	63–35	Canterbury Tactix	Monday 29 June, 7:00 pm	Hisense Arena, Melbourne

All matches involved trans-Tasman clashes. Goals scored by Australian and New Zealand teams were accumulated, and the country with the most goals won. Despite New Zealand teams winning three of the five matches, Australia won the Rivalry Round Trophy by 261–252.

Round 14

Home team	Score	Away team	Match Information
			Date and time	Venue
Southern Steel	55–48	New South Wales Swifts	Saturday 4 July, 2:00 pm	Stadium Southland, Invercargill
Melbourne Vixens	80–39	Central Pulse	Saturday 4 July, 2:00 pm	Hisense Arena, Melbourne
Adelaide Thunderbirds	54–35	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Sunday 5 July, 2:00 pm	Adelaide Arena, Adelaide
Canterbury Tactix	63–56	Northern Mystics	Monday 6 July, 7:00 pm	Westpac Arena, Christchurch
West Coast Fever	52–54	Queensland Firebirds	Monday 6 July, 6:00 pm	Challenge Stadium, Perth

Standings

2009 ANZ Championship ladder
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	G%	Pts
1	Melbourne Vixens	13	12	0	1	769	614	125.24	24
2	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	13	11	0	2	673	562	119.75	22
3	Adelaide Thunderbirds	13	10	0	3	698	579	120.55	20
4	Southern Steel	13	8	0	5	662	645	102.64	16
5	Queensland Firebirds	13	8	0	5	700	690	101.45	16
6	Canterbury Tactix	13	5	0	8	639	662	96.53	10
7	West Coast Fever	13	5	0	8	666	735	90.61	10
8	Northern Mystics	13	3	0	10	642	727	88.31	6
9	New South Wales Swifts	13	2	0	11	709	748	94.79	4
10	Central Pulse	13	1	0	12	594	790	75.19	2
Updated on 7 July 2009 (Round 14, Game 5)

Table legend
Pos = Position Pld = Games played W = Wins (2 points) D = Draws (1 point) L = Losses (0 points) GF = Goals For (total goals scored) GA = Goals Against (total goals conceded) G% = Goal percentage (= 100 × GF/GA) Pts = Points (progressive tally)        Major semi-final qualifying position        Minor semi-final qualifying position

Finals

Semi-finals					Preliminary final					Grand final
Sunday 12 July – Melbourne
1	Melbourne Vixens	58
2	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	43
					Sunday 19 July – Hamilton					Sunday 26 July – Melbourne
					Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic		37			Melbourne Vixens	54
					Adelaide Thunderbirds		51			Adelaide Thunderbirds	46
Monday 13 July – Adelaide
3	Adelaide Thunderbirds	51
4	Southern Steel	45		Key:		Winning team advances			Losing team advances

---

Major semi-final

Sunday 12 July 14:30 (UTC+10)	Report Stats	Melbourne Vixens	58–43	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic		Hisense Arena, Melbourne
		Scoring by quarter: 16-10, 14-14, 14-7, 14-12
		Thwaites  35/41 (85%) McMahon  21/22 (95%) Howard  2/2 (100%)		van Dyk  24/25 (96%) Tutaia  19/23 (83%)

---

Minor semi-final

Monday 13 July 18:30 (UTC+9:30)	Report Stats	Adelaide Thunderbirds	51–45	Southern Steel		ETSA Park, Adelaide
		Scoring by quarter: 12-11, 15-11, 11-10, 13-13
		Beveridge  31/36 (86%) Medhurst  20/21 (95%)		Dehn  23/27 (85%) Wilkins  22/24 (92%)

---

Preliminary final

Sunday 19 July 19:00 (UTC+12)	Report Stats	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	37–51	Adelaide Thunderbirds		Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton
		Scoring by quarter: 8-11, 10-13, 8-14, 11-13
		van Dyk  25/26 (96%) Tutaia  12/17 (71%)		Beveridge  28/30 (93%) Medhurst  22/25 (88%) Altschwager  1/2 (50%)

---

Grand final

Sunday 26 July 14:30 (UTC+10)	Report Stats	Melbourne Vixens	54–46	Adelaide Thunderbirds		Hisense Arena, Melbourne Attendance: 9,500
		Scoring by quarter: 13-13, 14-6, 14-13, 13-14
		Thwaites  31/39 (79%) McMahon  23/28 (82%)		Beveridge  28/34 (82%) Medhurst  18/23 (78%) Altschwager  1/2 (50%)

References

• 2009 ANZ Championship season draw – Released on 12 November 2008.

1. "League stands firm on draw". Fox Sports (online). 2008-11-13. Retrieved 2008-02-06.
2. "Pre-Season Tournaments to test teams" (Press release). Netball New Zealand. 2009-02-09. Archived from the original on 25 February 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-17.
3. Seconi, Adrian (2009-02-05). "Tactix out of Queenstown pre-season tournament". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 2009-02-06.
4. Johannsen, Dana (2009-02-23). "Hard work pays off for unbeaten Mystics". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
5. "ANZ teams in action at pre-season tournament". SKY Sports (New Zealand). Retrieved 2009-02-07.
6. Broun, Samantha (2009-03-09). "NSW Swifts win netball's pre-season cup". theroar.com.au. Archived from the original on 2009-06-11. Retrieved 2009-04-04.
7. Newstalk ZB, ONE Sport (2009-03-23). "Magic beat Mystics in pre-season". TVNZ. Archived from the original on 2009-06-11. Retrieved 2009-04-04.