Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua has labelled her standing down a waste of time and says she has not agreed to any changes in the high-performance environment.
The 2019 World Cup-winning coach has also revealed she has been fielding job offers from around the world since getting stood down days out from September’s Taini Jamison series.
Taurua is adamant she has not agreed to any changes in the high-performance environment and intends to keep her coaching team the same – despite a statement from Netball NZ which suggested changes were agreed upon.
“What I am clear on is that Netball New Zealand has the right to make changes, or they have the right to contract people within the environment.
“But I haven’t agreed on any changes at all.”
When Taurua was reinstated as coach on October 25, Netball New Zealand’s statement said: “Netball NZ and Dame Noeline will work in partnership to embed the agreed changes and to focus fully on the future — including preparations for the next pinnacle event, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in July 2026″.
Taurua said all communication between her and NNZ since she was stood down in September has been through lawyers.
She claims all discussion has been about getting her reinstated.
“I was talking about survival and reinstatement. That’s really where I was. Every day was getting my job back and speaking my truth.”
Taurua claims not to have spoken to chief executive Jennie Wyllie about the high-performance environment.
The issue stems from player complaints made after a camp in Sydney in January, in which athletes felt “unsafe”.
Taurua claims not to know what the complaints were or who complained.
“I don’t have any specifics around what that is. But I want to reiterate, I have no issue in regards to hearing the voice of the athlete.
“I’m really open to hearing the specifics. I need specifics to be able to provide solutions and to meet the needs of the individual.”
Taurua said the entire process has been a waste of time.
“It’s been very traumatic. I’ve committed a lot to netball, not only in New Zealand, but also other countries, and this is what I do. So, it’s been a harrowing experience, and something that I would not want on anybody else.”
Taurua said she has had many overseas offers from Australian and English club sides.
“I’ve had offers since day one, which actually was very sweet of people. So as soon as people knew that I had been stood down, I had offers from everywhere.”
She confirmed she was not offered any international coaching roles.
Taurua said there are a few reasons she still wants the job.
“If I didn’t believe or feel that I had the support of the majority of the team, I would have walked straight away right at the beginning.
“The second thing was about reputation, and I was glad that there’s wording in the public release that there was nothing found, so that was really important to me. And then the third thing is, I’ve done nothing wrong, so I stand by that.”
Taurua admits she is unsure how many of the players are in her corner.
“There are probably six or seven players that I haven’t worked with at all. But there’s strong support in there. I can’t tell you what the numbers are.”
She said it will be a challenge to unite the Silver Ferns, given player complaints have not resulted in any change.
“In high performance, things are never linear. There are things that people like and things that people don’t like, 100% I will listen to the person. Whoever those people are, I love them.
“I’ll go to their house with their mums and dads and their aunties and their nannies to make them feel safe and comfortable.
“I’ll do anything for them to be able to perform and to be happy. These are the things we’ve got to work through, but I’m really confident that the support is majority.”
Taurua admitted she did not watch the Silver Ferns while she was stood down, only tuning in for tests three and four of the Constellation Cup, after she was reinstated.
“It was too raw and just too emotional for me. I wasn’t ready to be able to watch those games at that time, but now that I’m reinstated, I’ll be able to go back and watch them.”
It meant she missed Grace Nweke’s speech in support of her after the third Taini Jamison win over South Africa.
“I actually was watching the Grand Finals of NRL. So I wasn’t watching that, but as soon as it went on, my phone started to go, “Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep.” And I wondered, “What was happening?” and then I rewatched it. I just, ‘oh man’, like my heart just sung. She’s speaking her truth and so courageous and so strong.“
Taurua will not attend the Ferns’ Northern Tour – featuring tests against Scotland and England – to “minimise disruption”.
There are no more scheduled tests between the end of the tour and the start of next year’s Commonwealth Games, meaning Taurua will go almost two years without taking charge of a Silver Ferns test.
“I have to be quite creative, and I’ve got to work through that with Netball New Zealand. But it’s like a builder, you’ve got to build. I’m a coach, and where I coach is on court, I’m in training. That’s what I do. That’s my trade.”
Nathan Limm has been a journalist with Newstalk ZB and the NZ Herald since 2020. He covered the Netball World Cup in Cape Town in 2023, hosts The Big League Podcast and commentates rugby and netball for Gold Sport.