Welcome to Winter 2023! A few more changes are taking place this season, one being the inclusion of Coastal Phoenix to the Premier League Division. We have also moved to club/season fees instead of weekly game fees to ensure we continue to align with the Netball SA Premier League woman's compeititon. We also see the beginning of our Junior Mixed grade which we hope to see flourish in years to come! Please have a read below for any questions you may be asking around this season and beyond. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me anytime with any other questions you may have.
Goodluck to all teams this season, I hope you all have a successful season and reach your potential on and off the court!
Warm regards,
Alexa Austin
SAMMNA Competitions Manager
How long does the season go for?
The season begins Monday May 15 and will conclude on Monday September 18. There will be 15 minor rounds with three sets of finals (qualifying/knockout, semi & grand final). There will also be bye rounds in the Premier League division only (please refer to Play HQ for your full draw).
Why are we playing at The Lights Community Centre?
On Thursday, 25 May 2023 (Round Two), the Premier Men's & Reserve Men's divisions will be playing an exhibition round at The Lights Community Centre. This is because we will not have access to Netball SA on Monday, 22 May 2023 and instead of a bye round, we have decided to showcase our Men’s League at our second SAMMNA location. This is a great opportunity for our men’s league to be put on display at another venue/night so that our competition gets the exposure it deserves. (Please refer to Play HQ for further game info.)
Why are my fees different this season?
In past seasons, SAMMNA has run the men’s competition’s finances as a social comp with game fees paid weekly. This fee structure did not include things like trophies, live streaming, equipment or uniform costs. Unfortunately, this has meant that SAMMNA was having to find sponsorship to cover this every season, and was also running at a loss. This season, and moving forward, the men’s competition has risen to the next level and will begin its pathway to integrating with the Premier League women’s competition. In doing so we have aligned with Premier League & AMND clubs in how they set their fees structures.
Fees this season cover:
- Court Hire
- Umpire Payments
- Uniform Hire
- Equipment costs
- Live Streaming
- Trophies & Presentations costs
- First Aid (SASMA)
Why am I paying my fees in a lump sum?
Fees will be paid for in a lump sum at the beginning of the season like all club netball does, instead of charging a game fee each week. Once your fees are paid you won’t have to pay a cent for the rest of the season! This is to ensure that captains & coaches are no longer chasing up game fees weekly, which results in clubs falling behind in payments and captains forking out extra money to cover this. It also means that players will commit to the season and will keep teams full and not needing fill ins as regularly. For those wanting to pay their season fees off in installments, we can set you up with Pay Advantage so that you can progressively pay them instead (please speak to your coach to receive the installment code for this).
What is the Netball SA Membership fee?
The Netball SA Membership is an annual fee that is paid to Netball SA by every registered netball player in South Australia. AMND, SUNA, SADNA, SAMMNA and many more associations who fall under the Netball SA umbrella are included in this. The membership is paid yearly from the 1st of April and includes insurance for injury (if you are injured whilst playing M-League, your costs will be covered by Netball SA’s insurance - for further details please contact Netball SA directly), maintenance and improvements to Netball SA facilities, Support for coaches & umpires including an association visit to mentor and more (please visit Netball SA website for more information). What this means is come Summer season 23/24, you will not have to pay another Netball SA fee as this will be due again in April 2024.
Who/What is the M-League Committee?
The SAMMNA M-League committee is a group of members who have been formed to represent the M-League competition and work with the SAMMNA board to ensure the competition is continuing to grow and succeed in South Australia. Chaired by competitions manager Alexa Austin, the group consists of SAMMNA board members, Jake Taylor (Elite Pathways), Lachlan Coppick (Finance), Clayton Wells (Brand & Marketing) & Caleb Barnden (Junior Pathways & Participation). The committee is also joined by external member Jessie Miller who will contribute to admin, marketing and events. The M-League committee has also formed an external panel who is not aligned with any Men’s League club who will be responsible for review, complaints and any conflicted incidents, should they arise. This panel consits of Competitions Manager, Alexa Austin, SAMMNA Vice President, Jake Taylor and acting Member Protection Officer, Desmond Ford.
What has SAMMNA got planned for the future?
SAMMNA and the M-League committee has been working closely with Netball SA and the current Premier League & AMND clubs over the past 6 months to ensure mens & mixed netball in South Australia is on a path for growth and success. So far we have met with all eight Premier League clubs to tell them about SAMMNA and reach out to them regarding their involvement in the future. As a result, we have been able to implement a Junior Mixed competition to grow the youth of mens & mixed netball which will in turn create depth and expansion of the Men’s League. On the 21st of May, SAMMNA has a strategy day which will result in a plan for Winter 2024 and beyond. A Men’s & Mixed working group will be formed after this which will consist of SAMMNA representatives & Premier League/AMND representatives. This group will be responsible for the strategy and cohesion of the Men’s League and Premier League in South Australia over the next 1-5 years. All strategy documentation will be made public to our members after the 21st of May.
