Our Performance System
The definitive measure of any high performance team is winning in pinnacle events; and winning these events requires the ability to consistently deliver under pressure. The premise of this strategy is that players who can deliver under pressure are produced by a strong, performance system that combines a structured learning environment with appropriately challenging competition opportunities.
At NCZ we believe that to win pinnacle events, we need a performance programme that produces athletes with the skill set to win and a pathway that equips them with the playing experience and understanding of how to win under pressure.
The foundation of our netball pathway is Netball New Zealand’s Player Development Guidelines, which are attached as Appendix 1. Alongside this framework Netball Central Zone has developed Performance Standards, which are attached as Appendix 2. These Performance Standards bring together the Development Guidelines and the Essentials Elements to outline the expected hauora, physical, tactical, and technical capability of athletes at each stage of their development pathway.
The NCZ player development pathway starts with our Centre performance/representative programmes, which culminate in annual Talent Camps and/or Tournaments to identify and develop our best secondary school age players. Centre talent development initiatives link to Zone performance initiatives through the annual Advanced Camp, where the best age group players from the Centres are further developed.
Thereafter, NNZ and NCZ identify athletes to attend the annual National Development Camp, from which the New Zealand Secondary School squad is selected.
In 2024 NCZ will place emphasis on those players, coaches, managers and officials who are eligible to represent New Zealand at the World Youth Games in Gibraltar in 2025. From 2025, emphasis will focus back to athletes born in 2008 and later, in preparation for the 2029 World Youth Cup.
Senior player development is delivered at the Zone level through the Pulse and Central Manawa campaigns, which are delivered centrally through detailed campaign plans that prioritise individual development alongside team outcomes, and which are aligned to the Silver Ferns campaign plan.
NNZ campaign squads are selected annually from the domestic competitions in which our Zone teams compete. We support all our eligible players, coaches, managers, and officials to be selected for international events, culminating in the Commonwealth Games and the World Netball championships in 2027.
We continuously review our player pathway, recognising that we live in constrained financial times and that scarce resources mean our performance programs must be as effective, accessible, and targeted as possible.
Figure 2: Player Development Pathway
Player Development
NCZ player development occurs through four programmes with different delivery mechanisms. The Pulse and Central Manawa programmes are centrally driven by NCZ; the leadership and implementation of the New Zealand Secondary School (NZSS) identification and development programme will be shared between Centres and NCZ; the lead Centre Performance programmes and all age grade representative programmes are Centre led with support from NCZ.