Donna Wilkins faced a challenging rebuild after the Mainland Tactix won the ANZ Premiership, losing seven players. Photo / Photosport
By Bridget Tunnicliffe of RNZ
Donna Wilkins barely had time to celebrate.
The Mainland Tactix coach had just guided her side to a long-awaited ANZ Premiership title when the reality of what came next hit - a gutted roster, a shrinking player pool and a three-week scramble to rebuild almost an entire team before the 2026 contracting deadline.
The Tactix were among the worst hit by the off-season exodus of some of the country’s top netballers across the Tasman, triggering a chain reaction in the New Zealand competition as franchises here competed for limited depth.
Players took advantage of Netball New Zealand’s U-turn on eligibility criteria, including star defender Karin Burger, who was granted an exemption to play in Australia’s Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) league, while still being able to play for the Silver Ferns.
Former internationals Te Paea Selby-Rickit and Jane Watson also departed, opting to test themselves in the Australian competition.
By the time the dust settled, Wilkins had lost seven players and had just weeks to replace them.
“You’ve only got a small opportunity to try and get players and with so many going overseas, it wasn’t just losing players, there was a whole lot of shift, you know there were some girls that were retiring, some that were going to Australia. So everyone’s kind of battling for a lot of the same players because we probably don’t have the depth that we’ve had over the years,” the coach said.
The rebuild had long been signposted.
Even before last year’s grand final against the Northern Mystics, Wilkins knew the squad was nearing the end of a cycle.
“If you look at the Tactix over the last few seasons, there were a lot of experienced players that were probably hanging in there to win a championship, they’d got awfully close on a few occasions so I knew a core of the players would either be retiring or looking for other opportunities.
“You always want to finish on a high and they sure did that and they earnt the right to see what was going to be next for them and because they performed so well, some of them, they’ve been given a great opportunity to play overseas where they may have retired so it’s kept them in the game a little bit longer.”
The Tactix also lost shooter Ellie Bird to retirement and Martina Salmon to rivals the Northern Stars, while fringe Silver Fern Paris Lokotui has taken up a rugby contract.
So where do you even start when you lose an entire shooting end and defensive line-up?
“Good question because I was only new at it right, I had done it leading into 2025 when I was announced as coach and it was right around that contracting window so I was kind of thrown into it, not really understanding how everything worked but I had great help from people on our board who had been through it a number of times,” Wilkins said.
“It’s like doing a puzzle, putting all the pieces together and seeing what was a good fit and we’re really big on team environment so a lot of the character came into it, as well as what the individual could offer on court.”
Wilkins said she spent countless hours on the phone.
“I don’t think my phone allowance quite covered the amount of minutes that were spent on the phone. There’s a number of people that you can talk to, you can talk to your team and who’s looking like returning but there’s a lot of rules around when you can approach players at other franchises and how you go about that and trying to work out if they have an agent and who that is so yeah, a lot of minutes on the phone.”
Wilkins recruited Australian defender Ash Barnett, who played a season at the Queensland Firebirds last year under New Zealand coach Kiri Wills.
“With that connection over with the Firebirds, there was some communication back and forwards to, I guess, understand with Ash being there last year how she performed and what her fitness was like and she came under Kiri’s recommendation and definitely helped that process,” Wilkins said.
Barnett will be joined in the defensive end by up-and-comer Laura Balmer, who has moved down south after a rookie year with the Central Pulse. Balmer’s fellow World Youth Cup teammate Josie Seymour has picked up her first contract.
The Tactix took advantage of Netball New Zealand’s decision to increase the import player quota from one to two per team.
Australian shooter Charlie Bell, who spent a season at the Stars last year, will add height to the Tactix shooting end.
“It was a good move for us when you’re looking to find seven players, it was quite difficult and having that option of having another import gave us an opportunity to have a really key person at each end of the court,” Wilkins said.
Shooter Hannah Glen has returned to the franchise after two seasons with the Mystics and the well-travelled Amorangi Malesala will add much-needed experience to the Tactix shooting end.
Wilkins admits she was relieved to hold on to her captain, Erikana Pedersen.
“Erikana is amazing on and off the court, she was a great leader last year and seeing what she’s doing this year and how much she’s grown in that leadership space is awesome. I reckon she was the best wing attack in the competition last year and I don’t hesitate to say that. And just seeing how much adversity she went through coming off an injury last year and how she got herself ready to be a part of every game was massive.”
Pedersen, 31, has come out of retirement twice, and after helping the Tactix win a maiden title last year, could have easily called it a day.
“I was stoked to be able to have her back for another season and being the person she is, this franchise has given her so much so she wanted to help grow that next generation of players coming through,” Wilkins said.
Holly Mather, who slotted in seamlessly in her first season of elite netball, is back for a second year at the Tactix, as is Parris Petera, meaning the midcourt has a familiar look.
Wilkins would have been pleased to pick up dogged wing defence Fa’amu Mulianga (nee Ioane), who spent the past three seasons at the Pulse.
Players, coaches and franchises are heading into another season of ANZ Premiership netball with uncertainty as to what the future holds for the competition.
There is no broadcast plan in place for the league beyond this year’s agreement with TVNZ for free-to-air coverage.
“We’re all in the same boat watching that space to see what is going to happen, no different to last year, the girls understand that it’s just a wait and see for 2027,” Wilkins said.
“But I think if you ask all the individuals, their focus now is this season and it’s really exciting after all the work and effort they’ve put in in the pre-season.”
– RNZ