Netball: Warrior women

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It seems netball is becoming net-brawl. While the semi-professional sport has evolved greatly from the genteel days when it was a genuine non-contact game, prominent coaches and players have growing concerns about the physical nature of the sport and the resulting penalty counts.

One ANZ Championship match this year was blighted by 139 penalties - one every 25 seconds.

While the game is faster than ever before, umpires are left wrestling with a clumsy, antiquated and unclear system around fouls, infringements and penalties, while players continue to stretch the rules as far as they can.

Silver Ferns coach Ruth Aitken has reservations about the future: "The increasing physicality has been a trend for a while. It is a tough environment out there and we need to be able to play in that environment but I am concerned about where the game is going."

Aitken talks of the "fine balance" between what umpires allow without being whistle-happy, and what coaches and players actually bring to the court.

"We certainly want the skill and the flow of the game to be there so it is a spectacle - a tough spectacle - but one that can be enjoyed. I think we have to be careful that it doesn't deteriorate in that respect. That is one of the trends that is slightly worrying."

Yvonne Willering has similar concerns and says changes must be made if the sport wants to progress.

"The umpire's whistle or voice is almost constant these days in a game," says the former Ferns and Mystics coach. "It must be really hard for the public to understand what is going on. If we want to promote the game, we need to simplify certain aspects."

There is little doubt that netball has never been so popular or prevalent - with television magazine shows, extensive column inches and live coverage of several games a week on both sides of the Tasman. Saturation coverage has also served to highlight flaws which may, in time, become a turn-off for viewers, spectators and even potential new players.

This seems a major issue for a sport that is desperate to grow internationally and ward off the constant threat of basketball.

The round nine ANZ Championship match between the Magic and Vixens featured an almost incomprehensible 139 penalties. The Melbourne side alone were stung 82 times that night.

There have been plenty of other games this season with more than 120 penalties, and one randomly sampled round saw an average of 117 penalties per match, almost two every 60 seconds.

On the international front, there was an average of 113 penalties per match in the three-game Constellation Cup series last year, and 119 per game in the two-test series with Jamaica.

Players often talk of their enjoyment of the physical side of netball and there is no doubt the advent of the semi-professional game has led to a faster, slicker, more skilful product - but with an added no-holds-barred edge.

Experienced Silver Ferns defender Joline Henry has noted the changes: "When you have people going out there that don't really have the intention of going for the ball and they are more looking to physically intimidate - that is where the line becomes blurred."

Willering advocates the introduction of a card system (similar to that already used in rugby and football) to curb some of the illegal play.

"There is so much pressure being put on umpires but it is the players that need to clean up their acts," says Willering. "With that many penalties, it is obvious that everyone is guilty."

The current system is arbitrary and also completely subjective. Players can be warned for persistent offending - usually for deliberate fouls, deliberate offsides, intimidation, hitting the shooting arm, etc - and then stood down (effectively sent off) if they infringe again. Defenders are often stood down for one goal but it is barely noticed, as they rejoin the action immediately after the shot is completed.

The unwieldy system was thrown into the spotlight during the recent clash between the Tactix and Magic, when Canterbury wing defence Finau Pulu was singled out and sent off for three goals to the surprise and bemusement of spectators and commentators alike.

Tactix coach Helen Mahon Stroud rightly wondered why the officials had chosen that moment, "after weeks of non-action".

Firebirds defender Laura Geitz has accumulated 185 penalties over 11 rounds this year; Susan Fuhrmann (180), Anna Scarlett (173), Casey Williams (165) and Katrina Grant (162) are among many other high profile player who have racked up the offences - Pulu has 95.

There is also seemingly no objective rationale behind the severity of the punishment. When she was Mystics coach, Willering recalls approaching an umpire post-match to query the reason for a player being stood down for four goals.

The reply - "that is what I felt it was worth" - is as mystifying now as it clearly was then. Willering thinks there should be a three colour card system, with the first a notice, the second a warning and the third meaning the player is stood down for a specified amount of goals or time period.

"When there is clear and obvious punishment like this, we may see a change in player behaviour out on court."

"Umpires need to really assert dominance," agrees Henry. "Sometimes they are being too lenient. They are calling people up but then not warning them. It is the basics of reinforcement. They need to show players that they can't do certain things, which sends a clear message. It would only take a couple of [sending offs] and people would stop doing it."

With so many collisions already present in a supposed non-contact sport, some commentators have also called for a loosening of the rules around contact but Willering is against such measures.

"With so much at stake these days, players will push the limits on anything," says Willering, "and they would just take advantage of it as far as they could. The game is tough enough already - we need to smarten up so the skill factor comes into it more."

Unlike league, rugby or football, the officials in netball are shrouded in mystery. Little is heard about them before, during or after games. Perhaps that needs to change.

"Sometimes everything around umpiring is a bit too precious," says Willering. "They are part of the game but, in another way, they are not."

"Our sport has leapt into the semi-professional world but there is a lot that needs catching up," says Aitken.

"The umpiring model is not as semi-professional as the playing model at the moment and that is because our sport is in the early days of professionalism."