The longest-serving coach in the history of Australian netball has put pen to paper to remain in the game for another two years.
Julie Fitzgerald’s two-year contract extension will see the GIANTS’ inaugural coach extend her National League coaching career to 27 years in the top job.
Across three teams – the NSW Swifts, Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic in New Zealand and the GIANTS – Fitzgerald has coached just shy of 400 elite-level games.
She is a five-time premiership coach and looking to add a sixth (or seventh) title as part of her ongoing tenure at the GIANTS.
Fitzgerald develops and attracts world-class athletes and has been instrumental in the set-up and success of the GIANTS to date.
As the Suncorp Super Netball competition enters its eighth season, Fitzgerald is one of just two coaches who remain at the helm from the League’s inaugural season in 2017.
The netball icon said she is excited for the next two seasons.
“I’m incredibly lucky to be able to work with this team and this club. We’ve got a lot of things we want to achieve, and we know we’re capable of doing it,” Fitzgerald said.
“To have an opportunity to build again over the next couple of years is very exciting.”
Fitzgerald has coached every one of the GIANTS’ 108 Suncorp Super Netball games, including four finals campaigns and two Grand Final appearances.
A return to the finals series is well and truly on Fitzgerald’s to-do list for the next season.
“I think the minute we finished the last game; we started planning what we wanted to achieve next year and how we are going to get there,” she said.
“We’ve got a lot of young players and we’ve invested a lot in them so it’s going to be exciting to see how they continue to develop over the next couple of years.”
Fitzgerald’s re-signing will see her continue into her 27th season as a National League head coach.
“There’s been things along the way to invigorate my career,” she said.
“My time at the AIS and my time in New Zealand and now being a part of this club and being a part of something bigger.
“I’ve been really fortunate that there has been steps along the way that have really refreshed me.”
Chair of Netball NSW, Sallianne Faulkner, congratulated Fitzgerald on the re-appointment.
“Julie is a stalwart of our game, not only in NSW but across world netball and it's an honour to have her continuing to lead the GIANTS,” Ms Faulkner said.
“Players near and far want to play for Julie and we’ve seen this across not only her seven seasons with the GIANTS, but throughout her 25-year career.
“Her belief in our homegrown talent is a fantastic endorsement of our pathway programs and the love and guidance she shows the entire GIANTS family is second to none.”
Fitzgerald is the first to formalise her commitment to the GIANTS for 2024 and beyond, with the League’s player signing period yet to open.
