Silver Ferns coaching contest won't faze Dame Noeline

Analysis - Having to reapply for a national head coaching job would feel like a trip to the dentist for most people, but Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua is not like most people.

With Dame Noeline's contract winding up Netball New Zealand recently announced they were advertising the role, and the veteran coach plans on reapplying.

The last time Netball New Zealand went to market for the Silver Ferns coach was in late 2015, when Janine Southby surprisingly got the job ahead of Dame Noeline.

After a series of disappointing results and a fourth placing at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, which prompted an independent review, Noeline Taurua answered an SOS call to take over and guided the side to a stunning World Cup victory the following year.

Netball New Zealand CEO Jennie Wyllie said the first round would involve a panel interview.

"An independent panel ...because we feel that's really important. And equally as important is player input into that because this is the group that will take us forward to 2027 and we want to ensure we've got a voice for them," Wyllie said.

The panel will consist of a senior leader from High Performance Sport NZ, a Netball New Zealand Board representative, the head of high performance from a National Sports Organisation outside of netball, a former player with strong corporate, commercial and governance experience, and Netball NZ's Head of High Performance Stephen Hotter.

After short-listing, a second round of interviews will be held by Wyllie and Netball NZ Board Chair Matt Whineray.

Sceptics might conclude that reapplying for her job was a situation that Dame Noeline was forced into.

Most people in her situation would rather have a tooth pulled out but you get the feeling she wants to prove to the panel and herself that she is the best candidate.

She is a constant seeker of knowledge and never appears to feel threatened or insecure about input from others, in fact she welcomes it.

In her last series in charge she enlisted Australian coach Briony Akle as a specialist for the series and said she was excited about working with her.

"I've had the experience to coach against her and I've always enjoyed watching her. She's a master coach and it's another opportunity for these players to get experience under such a coach, for us to learn the Australian way and also for myself as PD [personal development]," Dame Noeline said at the time.

Dame Noeline was on top of the world after the 2019 World Cup success and two Australian league titles.

But given the Silver Ferns fourth place finish at last year's World Cup, it would be risky for Netball New Zealand to simply roll her appointment over.

If the team didn't make any headway in the next couple of years, the organisation would be criticised for sticking with a coach based on reputation and past results.

The input of players will be important.

Players rave about Dame Noeline but there is such a thing as coaches hitting a ceiling with a group, which doesn't mean that the coach isn't any good.

She has been at the helm since 2018 so it would be understandable if players feel they would benefit from a new voice.

Equally, you can never underestimate Dame Noeline's ability to evolve.

In the earlier stages of her career Taurua forked out large sums of money to attend a series of speeches presented by high profile corporate leaders, including former US President Bill Clinton, and even visited South Korea to learn from the national women's handball coach, all in the quest of being better.

She sees coaching as a never ending process of finding a competitive edge.

The appointment panel will need to consider the environment that Dame Noeline has been working in.

Rivals Jamaica and England have benefited from having some of their best compete in the Australian league, while New Zealand continues to discourage players going offshore.

Despite all that, the Silver Ferns are still the only side in the world that have managed two back-to-back wins over world champions Australia in recent times, when they levelled the Constellation Cup in October last year.

Dame Noeline has a 61 percent winning record across 76 tests, up from her predecessor Janine Southby's 51 percent, and before that Waimarama Taumaunu enjoyed a 68 percent success rate.

Under Dame Noeline the Silver Ferns have a 39 percent success rate against Australia, which compares to Southby's 15 percent, and the 33 percent managed by Taumaunu before her.

To be fair to Southby, she didn't have two of the greatest Silver Ferns to ever step on court for New Zealand when she went to the Commonwealth Games in 2018.

Laura Langman took a break from the game after being barred from the Ferns because she was playing in the Australian league, and Casey Kopua came out of retirement for the 2019 World Cup campaign under Dame Noeline.

Who's the competition?

Netball New Zealand is open to the possibility of hiring a coach from overseas.

The only real hesitation to hiring an Australian head coach might be their lack of knowledge around the zone defence, which New Zealand is known for.

That could be mitigated by having a New Zealand assistant coach, who could focus on the defensive end.

Akle, coach of the New South Wales Swifts, might consider applying. Jane Woodlands-Thompson is another Australian who has worked with the Silver Ferns as a specialist.

Rob Wright has been the assistant coach at the Auckland based Mystics since 2021 so has a good understanding of the New Zealand style.

He previously told RNZ he would love to work with the Silver Ferns; the technically minded coach might be better suited to an assistant coaching role.

England based former Silver Fern Liana Leota is building nicely into a career which could lead her to the big job in New Zealand one day.

But when she was in Aotearoa last year as stand-in coach for England, she said she didn't feel ready for the all-encompassing job of being a coach of a national side.

In terms of New Zealand based coaches, no one has the level of knowledge that Dame Noeline has amassed. She's the only Kiwi who has coached in the highly competitive Australian league.

Former Pulse coach Yvette McCausland-Durie might be at the top of the list. She's had a measured rise in the sport and after some early lows has grown into a formidable coach.

Last year she stepped down after six seasons in charge of the Pulse in the ANZ Premiership era. In that time she led them to the final five times, including three titles.

She will also be very aware of the pressures that come with the job, having been the assistant coach during Southby's tenure

Stars coach Kiri Wills is popular with players and very articulate, which is a useful quality for the job. The Silver Ferns coach is expected to talk to the media regularly and they play a part in helping to promote the sport.

Last year Wills didn't rule out the idea of applying for the role, nor did Tactix coach Marianne Delaney-Hoshek.

Last year when RNZ asked Silver Ferns assistant coach Deb Fuller if she had any desire for the role, she gave nothing away.

"You can't be naive and think you're just going to walk into a role if you're assistant coach. Roles like that must be hotly contested because it's a responsibility to lead the sport for a long time.

"It's not something that you can just say 'I'll give it a go' it's got to be well considered," Fuller said.

Steel coach Reinga Bloxham has said that the Silver Ferns coaching role was something she strived for but the timing had to be right.

Netball New Zealand expect to make an announcement in early April.