GIANTS Netball will celebrate a huge milestone in the short history of their club when they run out in their 50th Suncorp Super Netball match on Tuesday night.
The clash with the West Coast Fever will mark the 50th time the orange dress has been worn on court since the formation of the club.
Suncorp Super Netball began a new chapter in Australian Netball history in 2017 and with the netball revolution came the introduction of the GIANTS.
A second team for all of NSW and the ACT, GIANTS Netball was formed to provide more opportunities for the 115,000+ locally registered members to represent their state at netball’s highest domestic level.
It also gave fans an opportunity to attend more home games than ever before, and witness the world’s best netballers live in action.
That dream has come to fruition with the GIANTS boasting eight current players who hail from local areas.
Back in 2016, when the ANZ Championship disbanded, Julie Fitzgerald was one of the first signings for the club as the former Diamonds Assistant Coach returned home from New Zealand to take the reins for the inaugural season.
NSW netball legend and former Swift Kim Green crossed town to join her and was named the club’s inaugural captain.
The first two seasons saw the team play off in successive finals series, make the 2017 Grand Final and claim the minor premiership in 2018.
In 2019 the GIANTS just fell short of their third successive finals series, finishing in fifth by the smallest of percentage.
It was Fitzgerald who brought with her from New Zealand English Rose Jo Harten and now-Diamond Jamie-Lee Price, who had the opportunity to play in an Australian competition for the first time under her.
Fitzgerald also brought Newcastle native Sam Poolman back to her home state after four seasons at the Adelaide Thunderbirds.
The trio, part of the fabric of the club, will also line up for their 50th games for the GIANTS on Tuesday night.
The three have taken to the court - and started - in every match the club has been involved in at the elite level.
Kristiana Manu'a also returned from New Zealand alongside Fitzgerald, Harten and Price and is an inaugural GIANT.
It’s set to be a milestone night for the GIANTS with Caitlin Bassett, in her second season with the club, set to line up for her 200th national league match.
New recruit, April Brandley, will also play her 100th national league match should she take to the court on Tuesday night.
It’s been a tough start to the 2020 season for the GIANTS but with a short yet proud history, and plenty on the line, it’s a match not to miss when the GIANTS take on the Fever on Tuesday at 5pm.
