Agbeze joins Stars in 2018

England Roses captain Ama Agbeze will be in purple in 2018 when she hits the court for the Northern Stars in the ANZ Premiership.

The signing of Agbeze and young midcourter Christina Oscar completes the Stars roster.

Agbeze, an experienced defender, made her debut for England in 2001 and has gone on to play 79 Tests, including two Commonwealth Games (2006, 2014) and two Netball World Cups (2003, 2007).

She comes to the Stars having played in the Australian domestic league with the Adelaide Thunderbirds in 2017.

Stars coach Kiri Wills says she is delighted to have finalised her roster.

“It was a great relief to finalise the team and with such a significant signing as Ama we are really excited!” Wills said.

“She rounds out the defensive end and brings an absolute wealth of knowledge and experience as well as being an obvious leader, I can’t wait to get her here.”

Christina Oscar comes into the team after a year as a training partner and was a key member of the Northern Comets Beko Netball league side.

“Chrissey has been rewarded for the enthusiasm, commitment and work ethic that she showed in 2017 and this is further testimony to the value of the development pathway that the Beko Netball League can uncover,” she said.

“She was called into the Northern Stars team on a number of occasions as a replacement player and it was only a matter of time before she was promoted to the permanent roster.”

Northern Stars squad for the 2018 ANZ Premiership is: Ama Agbeze, Olivia Coughlan, Kayla Cullen, Holly Fowler, Paula Griffin, Ellen Halpenny, Fa’amu Ioane, Christina Oscar, Grace Rasmussen, Maia Wilson