KEY POINTS:
The shock axing of Northern Mystics coach Yvonne Willering is set to complicate the player contracting process for the Auckland franchise, with player recruitment and retention likely to prove difficult without a coach on board.
Willering became the first high-profile casualty of the new transtasman league after the Mystics revealed at the weekend that the former Silver Ferns coach was no longer wanted.
The Mystics are now on the hunt for an all-new coaching staff, with assistant coach Te Aroha Keenan's one-year contract with the team now expired.
The search is expected to take six to eight weeks. But during that period the player contracting window will open on August 15, with franchises to submit a preliminary team list to league management by October 1.
Given that the new coach is unlikely to be in place until late next month, the Mystics have no choice but to begin assembling their squad without a coach.
Mystics chief executive Mark Cameron said a selection panel would be appointed to pick the bulk of the team, which the new coach would inherit, but he admitted it was not an ideal scenario.
"Normally, of course, the coach would be an integral part of that process but in this instance it's just not going to be feasible, so we have to work through another option," he said.
But with all the uncertainty surrounding the coaching staff, recruiting players from outside the region will prove a challenge.
Retaining Mystics players could also be difficult and several will be ripe for the picking from other franchises.
Cameron said there was always a risk players could be poached, but he hoped that would not be the case.
"We hope not, we hope they are still motivated to play for the Mystics. That's something we will have to work through with the players and the players will have to work out themselves."
One such player likely to attract a couple of offers will be star midcourter Temepara George, who is fiercely loyal to Willering, her long-time coach and mentor.
Just weeks ago George announced she had signed a letter of intent to play for the Mystics next season, but that could change after Willering's axing.
George said she would wait to speak to her former coach before deciding what to do.
"I'm not sure at this stage," she said when asked if she still intended to stay on at the Auckland franchise.
Cameron said he would give the midcourt dynamo a couple of days before asking her to confirm her position.
"I'd like to think that within a few days we'll sit down again and review where we're at."
