2011 Adelaide Thunderbirds season
Encyclopedia
The 2011 Adelaide Thunderbirds season is the fourth season that the Adelaide Thunderbirds
are contesting the ANZ Championship
, and the fifteenth year of their total competitive history. In 2011, the Thunderbirds will again be coached by Jane Woodlands-Thompson, with veteran international midcourter Natalie von Bertouch
returning to captain the Adelaide side. The Thunderbirds have also debuted their new team colours in 2011, after announcing a team rebranding in 2010.
, New Zealand – which the Thunderbirds will not be attending.
and Geva Mentor
to the Melbourne Vixens as well as Mo'onia Gerrard
to the New South Wales Swifts. Losing both Mentor and Gerrard meant their defence lineup had to be changed from the last season. In their opening two rounds, they lost to the Swifts and Vixens by 20 and 18 goals respectively. However, they bounced back to defeat the Fever scoring 72 goals, the teams highest score in the season. Interestingly, the Thunderbirds haven't been able to win twice in a row as well losing twice in a row (except for round 1 and 2) and are currently with four wins and five losses.
The Thunderbirds have made surprises during the championship including having their main Goal Shooter, Carla Borrego play at Goal Keeper against the Firebirds in round 5 to stop tall shooter Romelda Aiken and scoring an upset win against New Zealand favourites the Northern Mystics after trailing by as much as eight goals during the match in round 6.
For the Thunderbirds to avoid the premiership curse, they must win the last four matches to have any chance of making the top four. However, their final three matches are played at home and don't have to play twice in the remaining super round.
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Adelaide Thunderbirds
The Adelaide Thunderbirds are an Australian netball team based in Adelaide that currently compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The Thunderbirds were formed as one of the foundation teams of the Commonwealth Bank Trophy , previously the premier netball league in Australia, which was...
are contesting the ANZ Championship
ANZ Championship
The ANZ Championship is the pre-eminent netball league in the world. The competition is held annually between April and July, comprising 69 matches played over 17 weeks. It is contested by ten teams, five from Australia and five from New Zealand...
, and the fifteenth year of their total competitive history. In 2011, the Thunderbirds will again be coached by Jane Woodlands-Thompson, with veteran international midcourter Natalie von Bertouch
Natalie von Bertouch
Natalie von Bertouch is an Australian netball player. Von Bertouch is a member of the Australian national netball team, and the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the ANZ Championship...
returning to captain the Adelaide side. The Thunderbirds have also debuted their new team colours in 2011, after announcing a team rebranding in 2010.
Transfers
| 2011 Thunderbirds player movements | ||
| Gains | Positions | Former team |
| Bianca Giteau (née Franklin) | GA, GS | West Coast Fever West Coast Fever The West Coast Fever are an Australian netball team based in Perth that currently compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The franchise was one of the foundation teams of the Commonwealth Bank Trophy, formerly the premier domestic league in Australia. They contested every year of the... (2009) |
| Cody Lange | GS, GA | New signing |
| Madeleine Proud | C, WA, WD | New signing |
| Kara Richards Kara Richards Kara Richards is an Australian netball player in the ANZ Championship, playing for the Melbourne Vixens.-References:... |
GD, GK | Melbourne Vixens Melbourne Vixens The Melbourne Vixens are an Australian netball team in Melbourne that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The team were formed in 2007 as an amalgamation of the Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne Kestrels from the previous Commonwealth Bank Trophy. Sharelle McMahon and Bianca Chatfield have... |
| Kate Shimmin | GK, GD | New signing |
| Losses | Positions | New team |
| Kate Beveridge Kate Beveridge Kate Beveridge is an Australian netball player in the ANZ Championship, who played for the Adelaide Thunderbirds from 2008-2010. She move to the melbourne vixens for the 2011 season. Beveridge is known for her long range goal attempts, high arcing shots and very high accuracy rate... |
GS, GA | Melbourne Vixens Melbourne Vixens The Melbourne Vixens are an Australian netball team in Melbourne that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The team were formed in 2007 as an amalgamation of the Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne Kestrels from the previous Commonwealth Bank Trophy. Sharelle McMahon and Bianca Chatfield have... |
| Mo'onia Gerrard Mo'onia Gerrard Mo'onia Gerrard is a Tongan-Australian netball player. Gerrard is a current member of the Australian national team, and from 2011 is playing for the New South Wales Swifts in the ANZ Championship... |
GD, WD | New South Wales Swifts New South Wales Swifts The New South Wales Swifts are an Australian netball team based in Sydney that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The Swifts were formed in 2007 as an amalgamation of two teams from the Commonwealth Bank Trophy – the Sydney Swifts and the Hunter Jaegers... |
| Jasmine Keene Jasmine Keene Jasmine Keene is an Australian netball player, primarily in the position of goal shooter. She is the daughter of Australian rules football player Laurie Keene, who played for the West Coast Eagles.... |
GS, GA | Released |
| Geva Mentor Geva Mentor Geva Mentor is an English international netball player. Mentor was selected for the England national team in 2000, debuting the following year against New Zealand... |
GK, GD | Melbourne Vixens Melbourne Vixens The Melbourne Vixens are an Australian netball team in Melbourne that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The team were formed in 2007 as an amalgamation of the Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne Kestrels from the previous Commonwealth Bank Trophy. Sharelle McMahon and Bianca Chatfield have... |
| Sheree Wingard Sheree Wingard Sheree Wingard is an Australian netball player in the ANZ Championship, playing for the Adelaide Thunderbirds. She started her netball career playing for a small, but successful club, Cheerio Eagles. She is also a student studying Primary and Junior Primary Teaching.-References:*. Retrieved on... |
WA, C | Not signed |
Pre-season
Due to the condensed schedule of the 2011 season, the official ANZ Championship pre-season tournament will not be held that year. As of November 2010 only one pre-season tournament has been confirmed – in QueenstownQueenstown, New Zealand
Queenstown is a resort town in Otago in the south-west of New Zealand's South Island. It is built around an inlet called Queenstown Bay on Lake Wakatipu, a long thin Z-shaped lake formed by glacial processes, and has spectacular views of nearby mountains....
, New Zealand – which the Thunderbirds will not be attending.
Summary
At the beginning of the season, many experts believed the Thunderbirds weren't able to defend the title due to losing Kate BeveridgeKate Beveridge
Kate Beveridge is an Australian netball player in the ANZ Championship, who played for the Adelaide Thunderbirds from 2008-2010. She move to the melbourne vixens for the 2011 season. Beveridge is known for her long range goal attempts, high arcing shots and very high accuracy rate...
and Geva Mentor
Geva Mentor
Geva Mentor is an English international netball player. Mentor was selected for the England national team in 2000, debuting the following year against New Zealand...
to the Melbourne Vixens as well as Mo'onia Gerrard
Mo'onia Gerrard
Mo'onia Gerrard is a Tongan-Australian netball player. Gerrard is a current member of the Australian national team, and from 2011 is playing for the New South Wales Swifts in the ANZ Championship...
to the New South Wales Swifts. Losing both Mentor and Gerrard meant their defence lineup had to be changed from the last season. In their opening two rounds, they lost to the Swifts and Vixens by 20 and 18 goals respectively. However, they bounced back to defeat the Fever scoring 72 goals, the teams highest score in the season. Interestingly, the Thunderbirds haven't been able to win twice in a row as well losing twice in a row (except for round 1 and 2) and are currently with four wins and five losses.
The Thunderbirds have made surprises during the championship including having their main Goal Shooter, Carla Borrego play at Goal Keeper against the Firebirds in round 5 to stop tall shooter Romelda Aiken and scoring an upset win against New Zealand favourites the Northern Mystics after trailing by as much as eight goals during the match in round 6.
For the Thunderbirds to avoid the premiership curse, they must win the last four matches to have any chance of making the top four. However, their final three matches are played at home and don't have to play twice in the remaining super round.
Fixtures and results
Notes- Colours:
- Home teams are listed left, away teams right.
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Statistics
- As of Sunday 10 April.
Player 0 0 0 99 0 188 5 11 62 24 0 0 0 1 1 20 2 8 50 11 147 185 79.5 41 7 137 4 1 22 33 335 372 90.1 5 23 0 3 7 60 35 24 32 75.0 8 1 38 0 1 9 17 4 8 50.0 3 1 5 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 1 23 24 20 31 128 11 0 0 0 7 0 3 3 1 17 0 0 0 0 0 3 54 8 8 111 10 0 0 0 0 8 0 2 9 41 2 0 0 0 7 0 22 5 19 84 8 0 0 0 78 0 1 4 13 96 17 Statistics key GS Goals scored A Assists I Intercepts GA Goal attempts R Rebounds D Deflections G% Goal percentage CPR Centre pass receives P Penalties = Competition leader T Turnovers conceded