‘My biggest challenge will be patience’: Liz Ellis appointed to Netball Australia board
- by Admin
- April 29, 2024
A year on from being knocked back in her quest to join the Netball Australia board, Liz Ellis has finally found a seat at the table.
The former Diamonds captain (2004-2011) has been appointed as a director and says she believes now is the right time to try and influence change.
Ellis spent 15 years representing her country at the top, appearing at four World Cups and three Commonwealth Games as she made her way to become our most capped player ever (122).
The Diamonds annual MVP award is named in her honour.
Off the court, Ellis studied law at Macquarie University and served on the boards of the Australian Sports Commission, NSW Institute of Sport, Sydney Olympic Park Authority and Players Voice.
She has also forged an impressive media career, previously commentating the Super Netball league for Channel Nine and 10, writing columns for the Sydney Morning Herald, appearing regularly as a panellist on The Project, and winning reality TV show I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in 2023.
Ellis got a good look behind the curtain of her beloved sport when she led a State of the Game Review in 2020 that assessed where netball was at before making various recommendations to help maintain its status as Australia’s number one sport for women and girls.
Overall, many would argue there is no name more synonymous with netball in this country – perhaps even worldwide – so the news that Ellis’s expertise had been cast aside by Netball Australia to instead reappoint some of its existing directors last year definitely raised eyebrows.
Speaking of her appointment, Ellis told ABC Sport now felt like the right time for her to take on a governance position, three seasons since she last commentated a game and pivoted to a different area of the media industry.
“Look, I’m really excited and I think it’s the right time for me to be doing it,” Ellis said.
“I used to think I couldn’t do it while I was commentating, simply because it’s a bit of a conflict of interest, but I feel far away from those duties now to take it on.
“I’ve sat outside the organisation and had an opinion for a number of years but now is the time for me to get in and contribute in my areas of knowledge and expertise.
“You should never waste a crisis and the sport has seen a series of crisis over the past 12 months, but it’s actually created an opportunity for some meaningful conversations to happen.”
Ellis has been critical of the sport’s direction in previous years, calling out its “callous disregard” for player welfare during last year’s pay dispute, particularly for its decision to serve Diamonds players with a letter warning legal action regarding their attendance at the Australian Netball Awards.
She was also part of an unsuccessful bid by businessman Matt Berriman to buy the Super Netball league and believes privatisation should definitely be considered moving forward.
This conversation comes at an important time, with talks happening between Australia and New Zealand about the potential of linking up in a netball league again beyond 2026, when the current Fox Netball broadcast deal expires – particularly seeing as none of the Super Netball teams currently turn a profit and expansion is high on the sport’s priority list.
As Ellis points out too, the year 2027 will also be pivotal as the year Sydney hosts the next World Cup, a tournament that will mark the centenary of netball.
“I still feel strongly that we should have a really good look at privatisation for Super Netball or some other kind of investment,” Ellis said.
“If then, after a proper look, it’s decided that it’s not the right thing to do, then you can explain to the system why and what your alternative plans are.
“There’s a couple of years left to run on the broadcast deal with some good sponsors in place, so there’s some opportunity ahead of the World Cup in 2027, where we will celebrate the centenary of the sport, to see what is best for it moving forward.
“Obviously it’s like planting a tree, the best time to fix some of these things was 20 years ago, but the next best time to look at is today.
“I think my biggest challenge will be to not be impatient, because I just want the best for the sport.”
Asked what her other focuses will be in her new position, Ellis said she thought it was definitely worth looking back at the recommendations made in the State of the Game Review.
“I think there’s some really pressing issues like making sure the relationships with outside stakeholders, like sponsors and broadcasters and government are really solidified, bedding those down and seeing how we can add value to them and give them what they need,” Ellis said.
“Other things too like ensuring the digital landscape of the sport is optimal, whether it needs third party investment, speaking with all the member organisations and making sure that everyone’s needs are being met, so we can position the sport to become a real voice for women in Australia.
“The State of the Game review certainly doesn’t have all the answers, but it’s a pretty good place to start from, so hopefully coming in as a new board member with that sort of knowledge under my belt will help and it won’t take me too long to get up to speed.”
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