Fitzgerald leaves her mark with Magic
Press Release June 18, 2014
There may be some minor tweaks but wholesale changes will not be a feature of Kia Magic’s playing roster for next year’s ANZ Championship netball campaign.
After bowing out in the preliminary final of the 2014 competition this week, the season is now under review for a Waikato/Bay of Plenty team who grabbed nobody’s attention early on but responded in kind with a creditable third place finish.
With a sound base of experienced players now established and rising young talent close at hand, Magic’s future prospects look bright.
``I think the potential of the nucleus of this group is enormous,’’ Magic coach Julie Fitzgerald said.
``We’ve got some players who are playing the best netball of their careers and have certainly got further to go.
``Then you’ve got this wonderful group of young ones who just have so much talent and so much potential who have been given a unique opportunity to come into this sort of environment a little earlier than they might have otherwise.’’
Magic underwent a massive change in playing personnel this year and broke new ground by appointing Australian Fitzgerald to rebuild New Zealand’s most successful franchise.
``It’s been a wonderful experience,’’ Fitzgerald said. ``People, whether they’re connected with Magic, or just the local community have been fantastic and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.’’
It was a huge leap into the unknown but the experienced Fitzgerald, who will be back next year, proved an instant hit in reinventing a new-look group, who hardly new each other, into a highly successful netball team.
``They’ve come an awful long way,’’ Fitzgerald said. ``They’ve created a foundation from which we’ve started to build something really special and I don’t see any reason why that can’t continue to grow.
``I knew that we had a young group and I wasn’t sure how long it would take them to come together, so I tried really hard not to think too far ahead in terms of ladders, where we might finish and things like that. But, obviously, you always want a group that’s constantly improving and growing, and in that sense we’ve probably exceeded our expectations a little.’’
It wasn’t always plain sailing but a complete transformation was never going to happen overnight. Magic had their chances to consolidate a top two finish and with it a home semi-final but a mid-season lull left them with the harder option of contesting the play-off stages across the Tasman.
``I think we have to be disappointed in the number of games where we created enough opportunities to win and let slip,’’ Fitzgerald said. ``That’s certainly an area we will be looking at next year, when we get a lead, being able to build and consolidate on that lead.’’
After a faltering finish to the regular season and the prospect of a quick exit from the play-offs, the character of the team shone through with their performances in beating the NSW Swifts in the minor semi-final and a narrow battling loss to the Queensland Firebirds in the preliminary final.
A lot of the credit for Magic’s upbeat season lies with the popular Fitzgerald, who assumed her latest challenge with relish, immersing herself wholeheartedly and building an environment in which the players thrived.
None more so than long-serving defender Casey Kopua who embraced the new set-up enthusiastically and with an extra spring in her step this year as she took on the Magic captaincy for the first time.
``I do honestly believe Casey has played the best netball I’ve seen her play week-in week-out, she’s in tremendous form,’’ Fitzgerald said.
``Although I’ve only worked with her this year, so it’s hard to compare, others tell me her leadership skills have grown immensely this year.’’
Jane Hunt
Kia Magic media liaison
Ph: 021-107-0287
