Netball diary: Solving the Magic riddle

Anna Scarlett. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Since the Magic lost Australian import Peta Scholz to a season-ending knee injury, names have been flying back and forth in netball circles as to who the potential replacement may be.

Given three weeks had passed and the Magic had made no moves to bring in a new player, it was thought they planned to make do with what they've got.

Then coach Noeline Taurua threw a spanner in the works by telling media after the Magic's one-goal loss to the Firebirds on Monday that a replacement player would be named this week. And so the theories sparked up again.

So far the Magic have played things very close to their chest and won't reveal where their thinking is at. However, we can tell you who it isn't.

Debbie White: At face value, White would seem an obvious fit for the Magic. While she is not a player of the same ilk as Scholz, she offers great height in the midcourt and has previous ANZ Championship experience. However the one-time Silver Fern said she had not been approached by the Waikato side.

Rachel Rasmussen: It is believed the Magic had considered bringing in the former Mystics defender, who played alongside Casey Williams in the New Zealand Under-21 team that won the World Youth Cup back in 2005. Rasmussen joined the Pulse as injury cover for Katrina Grant earlier in the year, but she still would have been eligible to play for the Magic as she was not contracted to any team. But no official approaches were made to Rasmussen, and the Pulse have subsequently sent another SOS call to the 25-year-old after shooter Te Amo Amaru-Tibble was ruled out last week with a knee injury.

Anna Scarlett: There were strong rumours circulating at the weekend that the former Silver Fern, who arrived back in the country on Monday, was coming back to join the Magic for the rest of the season. However it seems the timing of her return was purely coincidental. Scarlett told the Herald while she was in transit in Japan last Sunday that she was coming home for a scheduled break and would not be playing for the Magic.

Jade Clarke: England international Jade Clarke was another name in the mix. It's believed the experienced midcourter was keen to play in the transtasman league and signalled her interest to the Magic, but as yet the Waikato side have not lodged an application with Netball New Zealand to sign an ineligible player.

So was Taurua just foxing or will someone else be called in? The Magic have until Sunday night to name a replacement player, but it appears more and more likely that they will not be bringing anyone else in.

Early start for 2011

With the Mystics and the Steel facing an uphill battle to make it to the semifinals, and the Magic looking like they will once again limp into the top four, things aren't looking so good for New Zealand's hopes of a Kiwi team taking out the 2010 title, so we'll just skip straight ahead to a look at next season, shall we?

The ANZ Championship office yesterday confirmed the competition is being brought forward next year to accommodate the Netball World Championships in Singapore in July.

The 2011 season will commence on February 13, with the grand final to be played in late May, allowing the national teams about six weeks' build-up to the World Champs.

While the full roster of 69 home-and-away games will be maintained, the 2011 season will feature three double rounds, which will see seven or eight games played rather than the traditional four or five. This will condense the season to 15 weeks rather than the previous 17 weeks.

League general manager Anthony Everard said that after examining a number of options, the league was satisfied that the proposed 2011 schedule offers the best possible outcome for both the competition and players, in what will be a busy year for international netball.

"After three successful seasons to date, it was important to ensure that the integrity of the ANZ Championship competition was maintained, and not deliver a 'watered-down' version in 2011," he said.

"We're confident that we have developed a schedule which delivers on all of these objectives."

Julie's power nap

The pre-match entertainment at the Edgar Centre in Dunedin clearly didn't excite NSW Swifts coach Julie Fitzgerald.

Fitzgerald, who travelled down south on a scouting mission after her side's win over the Mystics, was caught snoozing in the stands before the start of the Steel v Vixens game. The Vixens looked similarly dozy in the first half of their match, scoring just 14 goals in two periods of play.