The 2012 ANZ Championship season is the fifth season of the ANZ Championship Netball competition in Australasia, commencing on 31 March. After two seasons of early starts to accommodate international competitions, the ANZ Championship returned to its usual format in 2012. The 2012 season comprised 69 matches played over 17 weeks, including an initial 14-week round-robin stage, followed by a three-week finals stage. The competition concluded with the grand final, held on 22 July.
Player transfers
Player Imports
Overview
Format
During the initial round-robin stage, played over 14 weeks, each team plays every other team once, and teams from their home country a second time, with one bye somewhere between Rounds 5–12 inclusive. Teams are awarded 2 points for each win, and 0 points for a loss. Tournament rules do not allow draws; matches that are tied at the end of regular time will extend into extra time until a winner emerges. In 2012, round 6 will be the designated Rivalry Round. At the end of the round-robin stage, the four teams with the highest points will progress to the finals stage. If two or more teams have the same number of points, they are sorted by goal percentage. The top four teams from the round-robin stage progress to the finals stage, played over three weeks in a Page-McIntyre System. The 1st-ranked team will play the 2nd-ranked team in the major semi-final, while 3rd plays 4th in the minor semi-final. The winner of the major semi-final advances to the grand final; the losing team progresses to the preliminary final, and will host the winner of the minor semi-final. The grand final will be contested in late July, between the winners of the major semi-final and the preliminary final.
Teams
Offseason
Players became available for transfer talks one week after the conclusion of the 2011 season. Teams had to submit their final rosters for the 2012 season by 1 November 2011. The Canterbury Tactix were granted special dispensation to include two imports in their lineup due to difficulties following the 2011 Canterbury earthquake. The Adelaide Thunderbirds submitted 11 players by the November deadline, and were given extensions until 23 March to name their 12th player, pending approval of Australian citizenship for Thunderbirds shooter Carla Borrego. If Borrego's citizenship application is successful, then fellow Jamaican shooter Jhaniele Fowler will reportedly be signed as the Thunderbirds' import player; if the application is unsuccessful, then an Australian player will be chosen instead. The beleaguered Central Pulse have notably acquired several New Zealand international players to bolster their 2012 lineup. Five teams have appointed new coaches for the 2012 season. Long-time Southland coach Robyn Broughton has transferred to the Central Pulse, and was replaced at the Steel by New Zealand U21 coach Janine Southby and former Australian international player Natalie Avellino, who were appointed as co-coaches. Helen Mahon-Stroud stepped down as head coach of the Canterbury Tactix and was replaced by former Silver Ferns coach Leigh Gibbs. Former Australian Diamonds coach Norma Plummer retired from international coaching duties and accepted the head coaching position at the West Coast Fever; Plummer was replaced as Diamonds head coach by former Adelaide Thunderbirds assistant coachLisa Alexander. At the New South Wales Swifts, Julie Fitzgerald was replaced as head coach by former Australian representative player and national assistant coach Lisa Beehag.
Pre-season
In contrast to previous years, only one pre-season tournament was held in 2012. For the first time since 2008, all ten teams compete at the same tournament, which was held on 2–4 March at TECT Arena in Tauranga, New Zealand. The new multisport venue was opened in mid-2011 and will also host several regular season matches for the Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic.
Round 6 is the designated Rivalry Round for the 2012 season. All matches in this round are trans-Tasman clashes. Goals scored by all teams from each country will be tallied together, with the country accumulating the highest number of goals winning the round.
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Finals
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Major semi-final
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Minor semi-final
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Preliminary final
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Grand final
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Festival of the Stars
The Festival of the Stars is a charity match in Australia, where two celebrity teams play each other to win money for their charities. The charity match is held annually during the round-robin stages of the ANZ Championship.
