In with the NEW: Te Paea Selby-Rickit

“I’m Excited for the Long Bombs!”

It’s a big year for new rules and new vibes - let’s see what players, coaches and officials think of all of the ANZ Premiership’s changes! 

Te Paea Selby-Rickit is one of New Zealand’s most exciting netballers, with a blend of experience, on-court athleticism and flair. Here the Tactix superstar chats about the rule changes she’s most excited to see – and the one she WISHES would change! 

It’s a BIG year for the ANZ Premiership this year, with plenty of new rule changes - and of course the one that everyone is talking about is the introduction of the two-point shot. What do you think about this new rule, and how will it change the way games are umpired?
I’m really excited about the new rules, the game is always evolving and I think this will bring something different to the game and will be great for viewers. It brings different strategies to the game for both attackers and defenders, which brings more variety. It shouldn’t change too much how the game will be umpired I don’t think, I guess it adds more to what the umpires need to look out for with more happening further out from the post, but I think how the game is umpired will be relatively similar. 

Coaches will now be able to be in a designated spot in front of the bench, which will mean more engagement with their players. Does this change anything for you in terms of keeping control, or guiding, the game?

We’ve had a few pre-season games now and have used the coaches box, we’re lucky Donna is loud and direct with her messaging! So haven’t noticed too much difference whether she’s sitting on the bench or in the coaches box. I’m interested to see how it will be used in season. 

And we will now be able to hear live umpire audio with the aim of improving clarity. What are your thoughts on this, and have you been preparing for this change? 

I think this will be great for fans to get a better understanding of the calls out on court. With crowds so loud, sometimes even for us players out there it’s hard to hear what the umpires are calling so I’m hoping more clarity on what’s being called can only be beneficial.

Do you think the new rules were a long time coming, and are you excited by them?

I am excited about the new rules, I’ve watched a bit of Suncorp Super Netball and some of the English league this year ,so I’m excited for something new and fresh in the ANZ Premiership. It keeps us on our toes having to change things up tactically, and it’s exciting for shooters to be able to show their long range shooting instead of always working to get as close as possible to the post. I’m looking forward to seeing some long bombs this season and seeing how defenders change up from trying to push shooters away from the post to doing the opposite!

All sports have to evolve with the times, new technology and the ever-increasing physicality of players. What do you think the biggest changes have been on court in recent times, and is there anything that surprises you now?

I think the biggest challenge is the how fast and physical the game has become over the years. It means athletes have to be some much stronger and train so much harder than ever. It’s great because athletes are getting faster, stronger etc. But it means the game is a lot more demanding for athletes and with this comes injuries, load management, more time away from home, work, study, families etc. 

If you could change one rule, what would it be? The rule I would change is the ability for the umpire to call the contact if they originally called advantage, but play was affected by that infringement, bring it back and set the penalty.