Netball NSW has today accepted the financial penalties handed down by the Netball Australia Board after it was determined that both the NSW Swifts and GIANTS Netball delayed reporting links to COVID-19 exposure sites in Melbourne during the 2021 Suncorp Super Netball season.
After completing its own investigation, Netball NSW is pleased that the non-compliance was found to not be pre-meditated and there was no intent by either team to deliberately put the competition at risk.
Some members of the NSW Swifts travelling party were required to isolate for 14 days in Adelaide after being identified as close contacts of patrons who attended a Tier 1 exposure site in Melbourne. The exposure site was not an area of concern at the time the patrons visited but was subsequently elevated to Tier 1 status by the Victorian Government.
GIANTS Netball were delayed departing Adelaide when the competition relocated to Queensland in July, after it was identified a number of players and staff had visited Tier 1 and Tier 2 exposure sites in Melbourne. Those sites were also not areas of concern when the team visited and were also subsequently elevated to Tier 1 and Tier 2 status.
Netball NSW has been fined $10,000 for the Swifts’ delay in reporting the exposure link. The organisation has also been fined an additional $10,000, suspended for two years, in respect of the GIANTS’ delay in reporting, and been ordered to pay $37,563 for the additional charter and commercial flights to Queensland.
While Netball NSW CEO Tain Drinkwater acknowledged errors from both teams, she said it was important they were viewed in the context of their circumstances.
“It is clear there were delays in reporting exposure links from both our teams and we take ownership of that,” Drinkwater said. “We accept the financial penalties but welcome the acknowledgement that these were not done out of selfishness or disregard for the competition. They were simply human errors made in high pressure and stressful situations and that context is very important.
“I want to again publicly acknowledge the huge efforts of our players, coaches, support staff and family members who made the season happen. Without them there would have been no Super Netball either this year or last year.
“While we admit the errors made at our end, we are disappointed that the public correspondence from Netball Australia gives the impression that all fault lies with the NSW Swifts and GIANTS, which the investigation conceded was not the case.
“The fines relate to the reporting delays and, in the case of the GIANTS, the extra charter flight costs and we understand our responsibility to pay those. But a lack of clear protocols and processes from Netball Australia during the season given the ever-evolving COVID19 changes often made life difficult for our travelling groups.
“For both the Swifts and GIANTS, who relocated up to five times across four different states over 67 days, it resulted in extended quarantine periods despite advice that it wouldn’t be required. Nevertheless, our teams and staff did everything in their power to ensure the competition continued with little delay, and provided a fitting Grand Final pairing for their supporters in NSW."
