2016 ANZ Championship season

The 2016 ANZ Championship season was the ninth and last season of the ANZ Championship.^[1][2][3] The season began on 1 April 2016 and concluded on 4 July 2016.^[4] Southern Steel were minor premiers.^[5][6] However they subsequently lost the New Zealand Conference Final to Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic ^[7] and were defeated in the semi-finals by Queensland Firebirds.^[8] With a team coached by Roselee Jencke, captained by Laura Geitz and featuring Romelda Aiken, Clare McMeniman and Kim Ravaillion, Firebirds won the Australian Conference, the Challenge Trophy and the overall championship. Firebirds became the first and only team to retain the title. In a repeat of 2015, Firebirds defeated New South Wales Swifts in both the Australian Conference Final and the Grand Final.^{[9][10][11][12][13]}

2016 ANZ Championship season
League	ANZ Championship
Sport	Netball
Duration	1 April – 4 July 2016
Number of teams	10
TV partner(s)	Fox Sports (Australia) Sky Sport (New Zealand) Network Ten One
Champions	Queensland Firebirds
Winners	Australian Conference Queensland Firebirds New Zealand Conference Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic Challenge Trophy Queensland Firebirds
Runners-up	New South Wales Swifts
Minor premiers	Southern Steel
Season MVP	Madison Robinson (Vixens) Jhaniele Fowler-Reid (Steel)
Finals
Champions	Queensland Firebirds
Runners-up	New South Wales Swifts

Transfers

Player	2015 team	2016 team
Jade Clarke[14][15]	Loughborough Lightning	Adelaide Thunderbirds
Sarah Klau	Southern Force[16]	Adelaide Thunderbirds
Hannah Petty	Southern Force[16]	Adelaide Thunderbirds
Eboni Beckford-Chambers[17]	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Team Bath
Laura Langman[18][19]	Northern Mystics	New South Wales Swifts
Lauren Moore	NNSW Waratahs	New South Wales Swifts
Maddy Turner	Southern Force[16]	New South Wales Swifts
Verity Simmons	Queensland Firebirds	West Coast Fever
Chelsea Pitman	Manchester Thunder	Central Pulse
Phoenix Karaka	Southern Steel	Central Pulse
Maia Wilson[20][21][22]	Mount Albert Grammar School	Central Pulse
Ama Agbeze[23]	Central Pulse	Loughborough Lightning
Liana Leota[24]	Central Pulse	Manchester Thunder
Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit[25][26][27]	Central Pulse	Southern Steel
Michaela Sokolich-Beatson		Northern Mystics
Keshia Grant	Mainland Tactix	Hertfordshire Mavericks

Sources:^[28][29]

Head coaches and captains

Team	Head coach	Captain
Adelaide Thunderbirds [30]	Michelle Den Dekker (Note 1) [31][32]	Erin Bell
Melbourne Vixens	Simone McKinnis[33]	Madison Robinson
New South Wales Swifts [34][35]	Robert Wright	Kimberlee Green
Queensland Firebirds	Roselee Jencke	Laura Geitz
West Coast Fever	Stacey Rosman[36]	Ashleigh Brazill
Central Pulse	Tanya Dearns	Katrina Grant
Mainland Tactix	Sue Hawkins	Anna Thompson
Northern Mystics	Debbie Fuller	Maria Tutaia
Southern Steel[37][38]	Noeline Taurua	Wendy Frew
Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Julie Fitzgerald[39][40][41]	Leana de Bruin

Notes

^1 In June 2016, Michelle Den Dekker was replaced as Adelaide Thunderbirds head coach by Kristy Keppich-Birrell.^[42][43]

Source:^[28]

Pre-season

On 5 March 2016, Melbourne Vixens played Adelaide Thunderbirds in a pre-season practice match at Wanganui Park Secondary College. The match was organised by Netball Victoria and the Greater Shepparton City Council. During the match, Vixens' Tegan Philip suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury which ended her season.^[44][45][46]

Between 18 and 20 March 2016, two separate three-day events were held simultaneously. Northern Mystics hosted Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic, Southern Steel, Adelaide Thunderbirds and Queensland Firebirds at The Trusts Arena while New South Wales Swifts hosted Melbourne Vixens, West Coast Fever, Central Pulse and Mainland Tactix at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre. The two events experimented with a three-point scoring zone and rolling interchanges.^{[47][48][49][50]} Vixens defeated Fever in the final of the Sydney tournament.^[51]

Regular season

Round 1

Fri 1 April	Northern Mystics	57 - 58	Southern Steel	The Trusts Arena
7:10 PM (NZDT)	Maria Tutaia  22/30 (73%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  35/40 (88%)	Report	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  48/56 (86%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  9/14 (64%) Brooke Leaver  1/1 (100%)

Fri 1 April	Queensland Firebirds	70 - 55	Mainland Tactix	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
6:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  45/49 (92%) Gretel Tippett  25/32 (78%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  37/39 (95%) Bailey Mes  18/28 (64%)

Sat 2 April	West Coast Fever	63 - 44	Adelaide Thunderbirds	HBF Stadium
2:18 PM (AWST)	Caitlin Bassett  47/49 (96%) Natalie Medhurst  11/13 (85%) Kaylia Stanton  5/6 (83%)	Report	Carla Borrego  17/21 (81%) Erin Bell  8/16 (50%) Cody Lange  19/25 (76%)

Sun 3 April	New South Wales Swifts	57 - 42	Melbourne Vixens	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
12.18 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  33/40 (83%) Caitlin Thwaites  21/27 (78%) Stephanie Wood  3/3 (100%) Amy Sommerville  0/1 (0%)	Report Stats	Alice Teague-Neeld  17/22 (77%) Karyn Bailey  20/24 (83%) Emma Ryde  4/7 (57%) Kimberly Commane  1/2 (50%)

Mon 4 April	Central Pulse	57 - 56	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	TSB Bank Arena
7.40 PM (NZST)	Ameliaranne Wells  23/27 (85%) Maia Wilson  34/38 (89%)	Report	Joanne Harten  34/40 (85%) Malia Paseka  17/20 (85%) Ellen Halpenny  5/5 (100%)

Source:^[52]

Round 2

Sat 9 April	New South Wales Swifts	78 - 50	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
5:18 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  25/29 (86%) Caitlin Thwaites   39/41 (95%) Stephanie Wood  8/8 (100%) Amy Sommerville  6/6 (100%)	Report	Joanne Harten  23/26 (88%) Malia Paseka  17/22 (77%) Paula Griffin  3/5 (60%)

Sun 10 April	Adelaide Thunderbirds	44 - 59	Melbourne Vixens	Titanium Security Arena
11:48 AM (ACST)	Carla Borrego  34/42 (81%) Erin Bell  10/13 (77%)	Report	Alice Teague-Neeld  21/23 (91%) Karyn Bailey  38/46 (83%)

Sun 10 April	Southern Steel	58 - 58	Mainland Tactix	Stadium Southland
4:10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  50/56 (89%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  8/11 (73%) Brooke Leaver  0/1 (0%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  35/38 (92%) Bailey Mes  22/30 (73%) Gemma Hazeldine  1/2 (50%)

Mon 11 April	Northern Mystics	44 - 54	West Coast Fever	The Trusts Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Maria Tutaia  27/34 (79%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  4/6 (67%) Megan Craig  13/20 (65%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  40/44 (91%) Natalie Medhurst  14/17 (82%)

Mon 11 April	Queensland Firebirds	61 - 45	Central Pulse	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
7:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  38/41 (93%) Gretel Tippett  22/25 (88%) Beryl Friday  1/3 (33%)	Report	Ameliaranne Wells  22/24 (92%) Maia Wilson  21/30 (70%) Te Amo Amaru-Tibble  1/1 (100%)

Source:^[53]

Round 3

Sat 16 April	Melbourne Vixens	47 - 58	Queensland Firebirds	Hisense Arena
5.18 PM (AEST)	Alice Teague-Neeld  15/22 (68%) Kimberley Commane  10/14 (71%) Emma Ryde  22/25 (88%)	Report	Romelda Aiken  42/45 (93%) Gretel Tippett  16/21 (76%)

Sun 17 April	New South Wales Swifts	68 - 44	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
12.18 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  19/23 (83%) Caitlin Thwaites   34/39 (87%) Stephanie Wood  11/15 (73%) Amy Sommerville  4/5 (80%)	Report	Carla Borrego  28/32 (88%) Erin Bell  13/19 (68%) Kristina Brice  3/3 (100%)

Sun 17 April	West Coast Fever	64 - 50	Mainland Tactix	HBF Stadium
2:18 PM (AWST)	Caitlin Bassett  35/37 (95%) Natalie Medhurst  19/25 (76%) Kaylia Stanton  10/16 (63%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  29/32 (91%) Bailey Mes  18/22 (82%) Gemma Hazeldine  3/3 (100%)

Sun 17 April	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	53 - 63	Southern Steel	Energy Events Centre
4.10 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  20/27 (74%) Malia Paseka  31/45 (69%) Ellen Halpenny  2/2 (100%)	Report	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  44/47 (94%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  19/24 (79%)

Mon 18 April	Central Pulse	52 - 52	Northern Mystics	TSB Bank Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Ameliaranne Wells  20/27 (74%) Maia Wilson  32/34 (94%)	Report	Maria Tutaia  23/32 (72%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  29/30 (97%)

Source:^[54]

Round 4 ANZAC Round

Sat 23 April	Adelaide Thunderbirds	46 - 58	Queensland Firebirds	Priceline Stadium
4.48 AM (ACST)	Kristina Brice  28/34 (82%) Erin Bell  18/27 (67%)	Report	Romelda Aiken  37/46 (80%) Gretel Tippett  21/32 (66%) Beryl Friday  0/1 (0%)

Sun 24 April	West Coast Fever	52 - 63	New South Wales Swifts	HBF Stadium
10.18 AM (AWST)	Caitlin Bassett  38/42 (90%) Natalie Medhurst  14/17 (82%)	Report	Susan Pettitt  24/26 (92%) Caitlin Thwaites   39/45 (87%)

Sun 24 April	Southern Steel	67 - 54	Central Pulse	Stadium Southland
4.10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  41/47 (87%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  25/28 (89%) Brooke Leaver  1/3 (33%)	Report	Ameliaranne Wells  21/25 (84%) Maia Wilson  33/35 (94%)

Mon 25 April	Mainland Tactix	56 - 55	Northern Mystics	Horncastle Arena
7.40 PM (NZST)	Mwai Kumwenda  29/34 (85%) Bailey Mes  27/32 (84%)	Report	Maria Tutaia  25/30 (83%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  29/31 (94%) Megan Craig  1/1 (100%)

BYES:  Melbourne Vixens and Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic

Source:^[55]

Round 5

Sat 30 April	Southern Steel	69 - 62	West Coast Fever	Stadium Southland
4:10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  59/65 (91%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  10/13 (77%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  44/48 (92%) Natalie Medhurst  18/19 (95%)

Sat 30 April	Queensland Firebirds	61 - 51	New South Wales Swifts	Brisbane Entertainment Centre
5:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  52/63 (83%) Gretel Tippett  9/16 (56%)	Report	Susan Pettitt  19/23 (83%) Caitlin Thwaites   32/36 (89%)

Sun 1 May	Melbourne Vixens	57 - 34	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Hisense Arena
12:18 PM (AEST)	Alice Teague-Neeld  19/27 (70%) Kimberley Commane  25/29 (86%) Emma Ryde  13/20 (65%)	Report	Joanne Harten  10/15 (67%) Malia Paseka  8/14 (57%) Ellen Halpenny  11/14 (79%) Paula Griffin   5/5 (100%)

Sun 1 May	Central Pulse	57 - 58	Mainland Tactix	Te Rauparaha Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Ameliaranne Wells  16/24 (67%) Maia Wilson  41/42 (98%) Chelsea Locke  0/1 (0%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  26/32 (81%) Bailey Mes  31/36 (86%) Gemma Hazeldine  1/1 (100%)

Mon 2 May	Northern Mystics	52 - 49	Adelaide Thunderbirds	The Trusts Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Maria Tutaia  24/30 (80%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  28/29 (97%)	Report	Carla Borrego  36/42 (86%) Erin Bell  13/18 (72%)

Source:^[56]

Round 6

Sat 7 May	Queensland Firebirds	70 - 42	Northern Mystics	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
5:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  52/57 (91%) Gretel Tippett  8/10 (80%) Chelsea Lemke  10/13 (77%)	Report	Maria Tutaia  23/33 (70%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  9/9 (100%) Megan Craig  10/15 (67%)

Sun 8 May	New South Wales Swifts	79 - 41	Central Pulse	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
12:18 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  16/18 (89%) Caitlin Thwaites  50/53 (94%) Stephanie Wood  13/15 (87%)	Report	Ameliaranne Wells  16/21 (76%) Maia Wilson  17/19 (89%) Te Amo Amaru-Tibble  8/11 (73%)

Sun 8 May	Adelaide Thunderbirds	54 - 69	Southern Steel	Priceline Stadium
1:48 PM (ACST)	Carla Borrego  40/50 (80%) Erin Bell  7/10 (70%) Stephanie Puopolo  7/9 (78%)	Report	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  60/70 (86%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  6/6 (100%) Brooke Leaver  3/9 (33%)

Mon 9 May	Mainland Tactix	48 - 69	Melbourne Vixens	Horncastle Arena
6:10 PM (NZST)	Mwai Kumwenda  31/40 (78%) Bailey Mes  17/29 (59%)	Report	Alice Teague-Neeld  17/23 (74%) Kimberley Commane  2/3 (67%) Karyn Bailey  50/59 (85%)

Mon 9 May	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	44 - 58	West Coast Fever	ASB Arena
8:10 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  25/33 (76%) Malia Paseka  12/18 (67%) Ellen Halpenny  1/7 (14%) Paula Griffin   6/8 (75%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  36/40 (90%) Natalie Medhurst  15/17 (88%) Kaylia Stanton  7/10 (70%)

Source:^[57]

Round 7

Sat 14 May	West Coast Fever	52 - 61	Queensland Firebirds	HBF Stadium
3:18 PM (AWST)	Caitlin Bassett  38/46 (83%) Natalie Medhurst  14/21 (67%)	Report	Romelda Aiken  50/57 (88%) Chelsea Lemke  11/16 (69%)

Sun 15 May	Melbourne Vixens	51 - 59	New South Wales Swifts	Hisense Arena
12:18 PM (AEST)	Alice Teague-Neeld  17/22 (77%) Kimberley Commane  7/9 (78%) Karyn Bailey  27/34 (79%)	Report	Susan Pettitt  24/27 (89%) Caitlin Thwaites  35/39 (90%)

Sun 15 May	Mainland Tactix	57 - 58	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Trafalgar Centre
4:10 PM (NZST)	Mwai Kumwenda  31/35 (89%) Bailey Mes  21/27 (78%) Gemma Hazeldine  5/6 (83%)	Report	Joanne Harten  35/43 (81%) Malia Paseka  15/21 (71%) Paula Griffin  8/11 (73%)

Mon 16 May	Northern Mystics	55 - 53	Central Pulse	The Trusts Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Maria Tutaia  21/29 (72%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  34/36 (94%)	Report	Ameliaranne Wells  19/24 (79%) Maia Wilson  34/37 (92%)

BYES:  Adelaide Thunderbirds and Southern Steel

Source:^[58]

Round 8

Sat 21 May	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	49 - 45	Northern Mystics	Claudelands Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  30/34 (88%) Malia Paseka  14/17 (82%) Paula Griffin   5/7 (71%)	Report	Maria Tutaia  29/33 (88%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  16/16 (100%)

Sat 21 May	West Coast Fever	53 - 54	Melbourne Vixens	Perth Arena
3:18 PM (AWST)	Caitlin Bassett  37/42 (88%) Natalie Medhurst  16/18 (89%)	Report	Alice Teague-Neeld  19/26 (73%) Karyn Bailey  35/39 (90%)

Sun 22 May	Queensland Firebirds	62 - 51	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
12:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  45/50 (90%) Gretel Tippett  17/26 (65%)	Report	Carla Borrego  33/36 (92%) Erin Bell  18/22 (82%)

Sun 22 May	Mainland Tactix	52 - 73	New South Wales Swifts	Horncastle Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Mwai Kumwenda  19/22 (86%) Bailey Mes  32/38 (84%) Gemma Hazeldine  1/1 (100%)	Report	Susan Pettitt  10/12 (83%) Caitlin Thwaites  32/35 (91%) Stephanie Wood  31/39 (79%)

Mon 23 May	Central Pulse	63 - 67	Southern Steel	TSB Bank Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Ameliaranne Wells  26/28 (93%) Maia Wilson  37/40 (93%)	Report	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  54/56 (96%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  13/21 (62%)

Sources:^[59][60]

Round 9

Sat 28 May	Melbourne Vixens	57 - 51	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Margaret Court Arena
5:18 PM (AEST)	Alice Teague-Neeld  23/31 (74%) Karyn Bailey  34/36 (94%)	Report	Carla Borrego  6/8 (75%) Erin Bell  13/16 (81%) Kristina Brice  27/30 (90%) Stephanie Puopolo  5/5 (100%)

Sun 29 May	New South Wales Swifts	58 - 67	Queensland Firebirds	Qudos Bank Arena
12:18 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  33/39 (85%) Caitlin Thwaites  10/14 (71%) Stephanie Wood  15/19 (79%)	Report	Romelda Aiken  46/51 (90%) Gretel Tippett  8/12 (67%)	Attendance: 13,314 [35]

Sun 29 May	Southern Steel	66 - 60	Northern Mystics	Edgar Centre
4:10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  56/69 (81%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  10/16 (63%)	Report	Maria Tutaia  13/21 (62%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  47/49 (96%)

Mon 30 May	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	54 - 44	Central Pulse	ASB Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  31/38 (82%) Malia Paseka  15/19 (79%) Paula Griffin  8/11 (73%)	Report	Ameliaranne Wells  23/30 (77%) Maia Wilson  21/24 (88%) Chelsea Locke  0/3 (0%)

BYES:  West Coast Fever and Mainland Tactix

Sources:^[61][62]

Round 10

Sat 4 June	Queensland Firebirds	56 - 44	Melbourne Vixens	Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre
5:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  39/43 (91%) Gretel Tippett  17/23 (74%)	Report	Alice Teague-Neeld  11/17 (65%) Karyn Bailey  19/25 (76%) Kimberly Commane  14/19 (74%)

Sun 5 June	Adelaide Thunderbirds	51 - 63	West Coast Fever	Priceline Stadium
11:48 AM (ACST)	Erin Bell  28/35 (80%) Kristina Brice  16/19 (84%) Stephanie Puopolo  7/11 (64%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  50/54 (93%) Natalie Medhurst  13/18 (72%)

Sun 5 June	Mainland Tactix	51 - 81	Southern Steel	Horncastle Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Mwai Kumwenda  24/26 (92%) Bailey Mes  24/29 (83%) Gemma Hazeldine  3/4 (75%)	Report	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  64/66 (97%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  13/18 (72%) Brooke Leaver  4/6 (67%)

Mon 6 June	Northern Mystics	51 - 54	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	The Trusts Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Maria Tutaia  29/34 (85%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  22/23 (96%)	Report	Joanne Harten  23/30 (77%) Malia Paseka  18/21 (86%) Paula Griffin  13/15 (87%)

BYES:  New South Wales Swifts and Central Pulse

Source:^[63]

Round 11

Sat 11 June	Southern Steel	66 - 51	Queensland Firebirds	Edgar Centre
4:10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  51/57 (89%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  15/17 (88%) Brooke Leaver  0/1 (0%)	Report	Romelda Aiken  27/32 (84%) Gretel Tippett  16/19 (84%) Beryl Friday  8/9 (89%)

Sat 11 June	New South Wales Swifts	57 - 58	West Coast Fever	Newcastle Entertainment Centre
5:48 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  20/23 (87%) Caitlin Thwaites  37/40 (93%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  45/50 (90%) Natalie Medhurst  13/14 (93%)

Sun 12 June	Melbourne Vixens	69 - 46	Northern Mystics	Hisense Arena
12:18 PM (AEST)	Alice Teague-Neeld  15/24 (63%) Karyn Bailey  52/58 (90%) Kimberley Commane  2/3 (67%)	Report	Maria Tutaia  19/24 (79%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  7/8 (88%) Megan Craig  20/23 (87%)

Sun 12 June	Central Pulse	46 - 60	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Te Rauparaha Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Ameliaranne Wells  16/25 (64%) Maia Wilson  23/25 (92%) Te Amo Amaru-Tibble  7/10 (70%)	Report	Kristina Brice  44/49 (90%) Erin Bell  16/19 (84%)

Mon 13 June	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	56 - 55	Mainland Tactix	Claudelands Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  40/43 (93%) Ellen Halpenny  10/11 (91%) Paula Griffin  6/6 (100%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  31/37 (84%) Bailey Mes  24/33 (73%)

Source:^[64]

Round 12

Sat 18 June	Adelaide Thunderbirds	53 - 67	New South Wales Swifts	Titanium Security Arena
4:48 PM (ACST)	Kristina Brice  42/51 (82%) Erin Bell  11	Report	Susan Pettitt  36/37 (97%) Caitlin Thwaites  31

Sun 19 June	Melbourne Vixens	60 - 55	West Coast Fever	Hisense Arena
12:18 PM (AEST)	Alice Teague-Neeld  18/22 (82%) Karyn Bailey  42/46 (91%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  53/47 (113%) Natalie Medhurst  8/12 (67%) ?	Attendance: 8,613

Sun 19 June	Southern Steel	64 - 54	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	Stadium Southland
4:10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  55/61 (90%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  9/15 (60%)	Report Stats	Joanne Harten  37/45 (82%) Ellen Halpenny  1/6 (17%) Paula Griffin  16/21 (76%)

Mon 20 June	Mainland Tactix	59 - 64	Central Pulse	Horncastle Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Mwai Kumwenda  43/45 (96%) Bailey Mes  12/16 (75%) Gemma Hazeldine  4/5 (80%)	Report	Maia Wilson  50/55 (91%) Te Amo Amaru-Tibble  14/17 (82%)

BYES:  Queensland Firebirds and Northern Mystics

Round 13

Sat 25 June	Southern Steel	65 - 56	Melbourne Vixens	Stadium Southland
4:10 PM (NZST)	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  49/54 (91%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  16/19 (84%)	Report	Alice Teague-Neeld  23/27 (85%) Karyn Bailey  13/15 (87%) Kimberley Commane  4/5 (80%) Emma Ryde  16/23 (70%)

Sat 25 June	West Coast Fever	70 - 47	Central Pulse	Perth Arena
3:18 AM (AWST)	Caitlin Bassett  52/54 (96%) Natalie Medhurst  18/21 (86%)	Report	Ameliaranne Wells  16/23 (70%) Maia Wilson  31/33 (94%)

Sun 26 June	Adelaide Thunderbirds	58 - 55	Mainland Tactix	Priceline Stadium
11:48 PM (ACST)	Kristina Brice  29/34 (85%) Erin Bell  29/34 (85%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  33/36 (92%) Bailey Mes  22/31 (71%)

Sun 26 June	Northern Mystics	53 - 59	New South Wales Swifts	The Trusts Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Maria Tutaia  22/26 (85%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  31/33 (94%)	Report	Susan Pettitt  24/29 (83%) Caitlin Thwaites  13/13 (100%) Stephanie Wood  22/27 (81%)

Mon 27 June	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	47 - 71	Queensland Firebirds	Claudelands Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  32/38 (84%) Paula Griffin  15/21 (71%)	Report	Romelda Aiken  50/59 (85%) Gretel Tippett  21/27 (78%)

Sources:^[42][43]

Round 14

Sat 2 July	Northern Mystics	62 - 54	Mainland Tactix	The Trusts Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Maria Tutaia  32/36 (89%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  30/32 (94%)	Report	Mwai Kumwenda  35/37 (95%) Bailey Mes  18/20 (90%) Gemma Hazeldine  1/2 (50%)

Sat 2 July	New South Wales Swifts	59 - 59	Southern Steel	Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
5:18 PM (AEST)	Susan Pettitt  30/32 (94%) Caitlin Thwaites  29/31 (94%)	Report	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  50/52 (96%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  9/12 (75%)

Sun 3 July	Queensland Firebirds	63 - 52	West Coast Fever	Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
12:18 PM (AEST)	Romelda Aiken  49/54 (91%) Gretel Tippett  14/18 (78%)	Report	Caitlin Bassett  39/41 (95%) Natalie Medhurst  8/10 (80%) Kate Beveridge  5/7 (71%)

Sun 3 July	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	56 - 55	Adelaide Thunderbirds	Claudelands Arena
4:10 PM (NZST)	Joanne Harten  40/44 (91%) Paula Griffin  3/3 (100%) Ellen Halpenny  13/17 (76%)	Report	Kristina Brice  37/42 (88%) Erin Bell  18/22 (82%)

Mon 4 July	Central Pulse	53 - 66	Melbourne Vixens	TSB Bank Arena
7:40 PM (NZST)	Ameliaranne Wells  11/13 (85%) Maia Wilson  36/40 (90%) Te Amo Amaru-Tibble  6/7 (86%)	Report	Alice Teague-Neeld  13/14 (93%) Kimberley Commane  1/1 (100%) Emma Ryde  52/56 (93%)

Source:^[6]

Final standings

2016 Australian Conference v t e
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	G%	Pts
1	Queensland Firebirds	13	11	2	0	796	656	140	121.3%	22
2	New South Wales Swifts	13	10	2	1	828	670	158	123.6%	21
3	Melbourne Vixens	13	8	5	0	731	679	52	107.7%	16
4	West Coast Fever	13	7	6	0	756	707	49	106.9%	14
5	Adelaide Thunderbirds	13	2	11	0	660	775	-115	85.2%	4
2016 New Zealand Conference v t e
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	G%	Pts
1	Southern Steel	13	11	0	2	852	732	120	116.4%	24
2	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	13	6	7	0	665	755	-90	88.1%	12
3	Northern Mystics	13	3	9	1	674	743	-69	90.7%	7
5	Mainland Tactix	13	2	10	1	708	825	-117	85.8%	5
4	Central Pulse	13	2	10	1	676	804	-128	84.1%	5

  Qualified for Conference finals
  Qualified for Elimination finals

• Pld = Games played
• W = Win (2 points)
• D = Draw (1 points)
• L = Loss (0 points)
• GF = Goals For
• GA = Goals Against
• GD = Goals Difference (= GF−GA)
• G% = Goal percentage (= 100 × GF/GA)
• Pts = Points

Source:^[65]

Challenge Trophy

Queensland Firebirds began their defence of the Challenge Trophy in Round 1 against Mainland Tactix.^[52][66] Firebirds were unbeaten at home throughout the season and, as a result, retained the Challenge Trophy.

Round	Holders	Score	Challengers
Round 1 [52][66]	Queensland Firebirds	70–55	Mainland Tactix
Round 2	Queensland Firebirds	61–45	Central Pulse
Round 5	Queensland Firebirds	61–51	New South Wales Swifts
Round 6	Queensland Firebirds	70–42	Northern Mystics
Round 8	Queensland Firebirds	62–51	Adelaide Thunderbirds
Round 10	Queensland Firebirds	56–44	Melbourne Vixens
Round 14	Queensland Firebirds	63–52	West Coast Fever

Finals series

Australian Conference

Elimination Final

10 July 2016 5.18 pm (AEST)	Stats	New South Wales Swifts	67–53	Melbourne Vixens		Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre
		Scoring by quarter: 17-13, 20-12, 16-10, 14-18
		Caitlin Thwaites  40/44 (91%) Susan Pettitt  23/24 (96%) Stephanie Wood  4/7 (57%)		Emma Ryde  37/42 (88%) Alice Teague-Neeld  10/12 (83%) Kimberley Commane  6/6 (100%)

Sources:^[67][68]

Conference Final

18 July 2016 7.18 (AEST)	Stats	Queensland Firebirds	63–52	New South Wales Swifts		Brisbane Entertainment Centre
		Scoring by quarter: 16-12, 16-15, 15-10, 16-15
		Romelda Aiken  49/55 (89%) Gretel Tippett  14		Caitlin Thwaites  17 Susan Pettitt  30 Stephanie Wood  5

Sources:^{[9][69][70][71]}

New Zealand Conference

Elimination Final

10 July 2016 4.10 pm (NZST)	Stats	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	63–47	Northern Mystics		Claudelands Arena
		Scoring by quarter: 17-10, 14-14, 13-13, 19-10
		Joanne Harten  44/48 (92%) Ellen Halpenny  19/21 (90%)		Maria Tutaia  19/27 (70%) Cathrine Tuivaiti  22/22 (100%) Megan Craig  6/7 (86%)

Sources:^[72][73]

Conference Final

17 July 2016 4.15 pm (NZST)	Stats	Southern Steel	57–59	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic		Stadium Southland
		Scoring by quarter: 13 -19, 14 -16, 15-12, 15-12
		Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  47/53 (89%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  10/11 (91%)		Joanne Harten  46/52 (88%) Ellen Halpenny  13/17 (76%)

Sources:^[7][74][75]

Semi-finals

24 July 2016 12.18 pm (AEST)	Stats	Queensland Firebirds	67–64	Southern Steel		Brisbane Entertainment Centre
		Scoring by quarter: 19 - 16, 13 - 19, 15 - 14, 20 -15
		Romelda Aiken  57/68 (84%) Gretel Tippett  10/13 (77%)		Jhaniele Fowler-Reid  51/52 (98%) Te Paea Selby-Rickit  13/20 (65%)

Sources:^[8][76][77]

25 July 2016 7.45 pm (NZST)	Stats	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic	45–64	New South Wales Swifts		Claudelands Arena
		Scoring by quarter: 14 - 16, 10 - 17, 7 - 16, 14 - 15
		Joanne Harten  38/42 (90%) Ellen Halpenny  5/9 (56%) Grace Rasmussen  2/2 (100%)		Susan Pettitt  15/19 (79%) Caitlin Thwaites  43/46 (93%) Stephanie Wood  6/8 (75%)

Sources:^[78][79][80]

Grand Final

31 July 2016 12.10 pm (AEST)	Stats	Queensland Firebirds	69–67	New South Wales Swifts	ET	Brisbane Entertainment Centre Attendance: 10,312	Fox Sports Sky Sport
		Scoring by quarter: 12-15, 17-12, 12-15, 13-12, ET: 15-13
		Scoring by half: 29-27, 25-27 ET: 15-13
		Romelda Aiken  63/89 (71%) Gretel Tippett  6/11 (55%)		Susan Pettitt  30/39 (77%) Caitlin Thwaites  34/41 (83%) Stephanie Wood  3/4 (75%)

Source:^{[10][11][12][13]}

Award winners

ANZ Championship awards

Award	Winner	Team
ANZ Championship MVP	Madison Robinson (Note 2) [33][81]	Melbourne Vixens
ANZ Championship MVP	Jhaniele Fowler-Reid (Note 2) [81][82]	Southern Steel
ANZ Championship Finals Series MVP	Kim Ravaillion[1]	Queensland Firebirds
ANZ Championship Best New Talent	Kristina Brice[30][83]	Adelaide Thunderbirds

Notes

^2 Madison Robinson was the MVP player in the Australian Conference and Jhaniele Fowler-Reid was the MVP player in the New Zealand Conference.

All Star Team

Position	Player	Team
GS	Romelda Aiken	Queensland Firebirds
GA	Susan Pettitt	New South Wales Swifts
WA	Kimberlee Green	New South Wales Swifts
C	Kim Ravaillion	Queensland Firebirds
WD	Laura Langman	New South Wales Swifts
GD	Clare McMeniman	Queensland Firebirds
GK	Sharni Layton	New South Wales Swifts
Coach	Robert Wright	New South Wales Swifts

Sources:^[84][85][86]

Australian Netball Awards

Award	Winner	Team
Australian ANZ Championship Player of the Year	Sharni Layton[87][88]	New South Wales Swifts
Australian ANZ Championship Coach of the Year	Roselee Jencke[89]	Queensland Firebirds

Source:^[1]

New Zealand Netball Awards

Award	Winner	Team
New Zealand ANZ Championship Player of the Year[38][90][91]	Gina Crampton	Southern Steel
New Zealand ANZ Championship Coach of the Year[90]	Julie Fitzgerald	Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic

Source:^[92]

Media coverage

All 72 games were broadcast live on Fox Sports (Australia) and Sky Sport (New Zealand). Sunday 12.00pm (AEST) fixtures were simulcast live on Fox Sports, Network Ten in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide, and by One in Perth. The season had a cumulative broadcast audience of 4.9m.^[1][29][93]