Netball Super League International Player Watch

Let’s start with a new and known of the NSL: Gabrielle Coffey and Sigi Burger.

For Australian Coffey this will be her first season in the NSL, having joined from Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) side Melbourne Vixens.

The defender is known for being extremely versatile and determined, and we can’t wait to see her take to court this season.  

Whilst for Burger, Panthers will be her 5^th NSL team since she made her league debut with Surrey Storm in 2019.

The South African shooters most successful season to date came last year in a Severn Stars dress, where she made 19 appearances, scoring 767 goals, putting her 2^nd on the goals scored chart.

Next up we have Wales based Cardiff Dragons, so it only seems right to start by recognising a Welsh Feather – Philippa Yarranton.

Yarranton has been at Dragons since 2022, but her real impact was since last season when she made 13 appearances scoring 172 goals at goal attack – her best NSL season tally.

You may also remember her stand-out performances for the Feathers at the Netball World Cup 2023 (NWC2023), which you can re-watch here on NetballPass.

Whilst we are on the subject of the NWC2023, we can’t not talk about South Africa SPAR Protea Khanyisa Chawane.

This will be Chawane’s third NSL season, and second with Dragons, where she was a real play maker last season putting in 428 feeds.

The centre court player was a key part of South Africa’s team during their home NWC and most recently captained the SPAR Proteas in the Vitality Netball Nations Cup (VNNC), where they finished 2^nd losing to England in the Final, despite beating the Roses earlier in the competition. 

You can re-watch her matches at the NWC2023 and VNNC on NetballPass, now.

Speaking of the Vitality Netball Nations Cup (VNNC), another international player that needs a mention and will be one to watch at London Mavericks this season is England Rose, Emma Thacker.

Thacker made her senior debut for the Roses as they won the VNNC. This comes off the back of a successful season with Mavericks in 2024 where she scored 165 goals in 12 appearances.

At the other end of the court, Mavericks will have an NSL debutant themselves this season, with Chelsea Blackman making the move from down under.

Blackman brings Suncorp Super Netball League (SSN) experience with her having been part of the Adelaide Thunderbirds program since 2018, and we can’t wait to see her take to court in the NSL.

Back for her second season with London Pulse in the shooting circle is Nichole Breedt, née Taljaard.

When we talk about Breedt we can’t help but remember that NWC2023 moment where the South Africa SPAR Protea scored a last second equalising goal for South Africa for them to draw against New Zealand, 48-48.

You can re-watch that game on NetballPass, here.

The second Pulse player we think you should look out for this season is the NSL interception queen, Funmi Fadoju.

England Rose Fadoju topped the charts for intercepts last season, with 50 to her name putting her 20 higher than any other player in the league.

They are back with a title to defend, its Loughborough Lightning!

But, whilst their mission is the same, their team has seen some changes including welcoming Trinidad & Tobago’s Samantha Wallace-Joseph.

The shooter was a key part of the Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) team NSW Swifts in their 2019 and 2021 Premiership winning campaigns, and she was even awarded three Club MVP awards and a Grand Final MVP Award in 2019.

Another Lightning debutant is South Africa SPAR Protea, Shadine Van Der Merwe, who has made the switch from yellow to purple as she joins Lightning from Manchester Thunder.

If last season’s stats are anything to go by, where the SPAR Protea made 30 interceptions and 49 deflections, then Lightning fans are in for a treat.

There seems to have been a switch of South African defenders for last season’s finalists as Manchester Thunder have welcomed Nicola Smith from Lightning for the 2025 season.

Smith made 27 interceptions and 76 deflections in her league winning season with Lightning last year, putting her fourth in the leagues deflections charts. Smith will miss out on the start of the season with a broken arm, but we are excited to see her back on court.

At the other end of the court, another SPAR Protea in Elmere Van der Berg, will be returning for her second Thunder season.

Van der Berg scored 570 goals in her debut NSL season putting her 6^th on the goals scored charts. 

Leeds Rhinos have an on form African shooter of their own returning for the 2025 season, with Malawi’s Joyce Mvula ready to go.

Mvula scored 667 goals for Rhino’s last season, putting her 4^th in the goals scored charts.

Mvula will be joined in the shooting circle by Future Roses athlete, Sophie Egbaran.

Egbaran was part of the England team that travelled to Trinidad & Tobago to play in the Commonwealth Youth Games in 2023, where the Roses won a bronze medal.

We can’t wait to see this shooting partnership develop!

Finally, Nottingham Forest certainly isn’t short of international talent for their team’s debut season!  

Scottish Thistle Iona Christian is just one player that has joined the roster, following a successful season at Thunder where she made 254 feeds in 11 games.

Making her NSL debut, Forest have also welcomed Uganda She Crane, Falidah Kadondi.

The goalkeeper was part of the She Cranes squad that finished 5^th at the NWC2023, and you can re-watch Uganda’s matches from the event here.