THE 2022 Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) season is almost upon us, so it is time to take a look at each of the contenders for the upcoming season and what 2022 might have in store for them.

Today we take a look at the Adelaide Thunderbirds, who finished seventh in 2021.

Season 2021

Ladder: 7th
Win-loss: 5-9
Percentage: 91.5%

It is safe to say that season 2021 did not quite go to plan for the Thunderbirds.

They only got five wins on the board for the season, which equalled their 2020 effort, but they developed a bit of reputation as a side that would “spoil the party” for their opponents. They ultimately finish in the penultimate spot on the ladder, only finishing above the Vixens. The defensive end was strong and real asset for the Thunderbirds last season, but their lack of a consistent wing attack really hurt them.

Looking ahead to 2022 now, and Thunderbirds’ captain Hannah Petty was really happy with how her side’s preseason had one.

“Preseason’s going really well. It’s always exciting to get to the end of preseason knowing that a game is around the corner and you’ve put in all the hard work, but we had a really good hit out preseason, Team Girls Cup was really exciting for our group, it just showed all our hard work is actually going somewhere and we’re ready to go for Round 1 this weekend.”

Petty also said how excited they all were in the Adelaide camp about where things are heading for the Thunderbirds this season.

“We’re really looking forward to this year. We feel like we’ve been building something pretty special over the last year and hoping to continue that this year and look, we haven’t been able to get the performances we wanted to in the previous years, but we really feel this year that we’re heading in the right direction and really excited to play finals and try and take out the Championship. Because we believe that we do do it and we can do it, when we put out our style of play that we want to and it’s just now doing that consistently and making other teams fear us.”

One positive heading into 2022 for the Thunderbirds is the consistency of their squad from 2021 into 2022. They’ve only had two changes to their squad from last season, which means they can build continuity within the squad and the team can gel together better.

Samantha Gooden and Shadine Van der Merwe are the two players from last season that have departed the team, and in their place in comes Tippah Dwan and Tayla Williams.

Dwan has come down from the Firebirds and is a goaler who offers consistency and playmaking skills and will be a reliable third option for the Thunderbirds. Williams is a midcourter, who is a hard worker that was elevated from the Thunderbirds’ training partner list.

Petty spoke glowingly of her new teammates.

“Yeah so our two new recruits in Tippah and Taylah, they’ve come in and they’ve got a great deal of flexibility that they bring to our team. They’re both two great characters, two great girls off the court, so for them to be able to come in and pretty much slide in seamlessly, they’re very versatile players which also adds to our depth and being able to play players in certain positions and knowing everyone’s going to do their job.”

Petty is excited about the potential of a new shooting combination.

“Oooh I think there’s a number of girls who are going to step up this year, but I’m really looking forward to seeing Tayla one of the new girls that has stepped up from our training partner,” Petty said. “I feel like she’s been having a fantastic preseason, really relishing in her opportunity that she’s been given.

“I’m really excited to also see Tippah and Georgie work in the goal circle. “We joke around at training, we call them “Zip, Zap duo” because they are both short and zippy players, and I’m really excited to see that because it is a point of difference I guess to other shooting styles that are in other teams. “Don’t get me wrong, love Lenny [Lenize Potgieter] and what she brings to the team, but I’m really excited to see those two work together as well.”

The Thunderbirds had a pretty good Team Girls Cup. They lost to the Fever by 12 goals but beat the Magpies by 15 goals and the Giants by a single goal to finish second in their group. They then played the Lightning on Finals Day and got the win by 19 goals.

Can will the positivity within the Thunderbirds’ camp translate to more success on court?

First up they have the Magpies on Saturday at 4:30pm local time.  

2022 SQUAD

Attack:

Georgie Horjus
Lenize Potgieter
Tippah Dwan

Midcourt:

Maisie Nankivell
Hannah Petty
Elle McDonald
Tayla Williams

Defence:

Matilda Garrett
Latanya Wilson
Shamera Sterling