The NSW Swifts are delighted to announce the athletes selected for the 2023 QBE Swifts Academy Program.
Launched by Netball NSW and Swifts Principal Partner QBE Insurance in late 2019, the Academy provides a critical daily training environment and support structure for NSW athletes who have the potential to play for the Swifts Club in the future.
Under the stewardship of returning QBE Swifts Academy Head Coach Lenore Blades, athletes will benefit from weekly high-performance court sessions, strength and conditioning and programs involving performance analysis, skill and movement mentoring, sports psychology and recovery.
The QBE Swifts Academy will compete the at the Australian Netball Championships (ANC) in 2023.
The ANC is contested by 10 teams from SSN feeder sides, plus Netball ACT and Netball NT, and is a bridging competition to SSN.
As well as the 2023 athletes, the Club is also proud to announce that Sharyn Hill (a former Sydney Swift - Swift #8), who has recently been coaching in the Netball NSW Premier League, will be Blades’ Assistant Coach in 2023.
Blades said she was delighted by the calibre of athlete she had to select from. “I am really excited by the potential in this group and what we can achieve with them, both in the Academy and the wider Swifts Club,” she said.
“It is really pleasing and rewarding to see so many of our QBE Swifts Academy players be selected as Swifts Training Partners for 2023, and of course to see players like Sophie and Lili make their senior debuts for the Club in 2022.
“That achievement has come early in the life of the Academy, and when you think of how much disruption the 2020 and 2021 season experienced, I know we have only just begun to tap into our potential as an Academy program.
“We have a really nice blend of youth and experience in our 2023 squad, with a lot of athletes who tasted Gold Medal success at this year’s National Netball Championships in Tasmania, so they have a winning DNA that we can build on.
“It is also wonderful to welcome Sharyn into our coaching team for 2023. As a former Swift she knows all about the history of the Club, while she is also an accredited high-performance coach who brings over a decade of experience of working in academies across state and international level.”
The Swifts would once again like to thank QBE Insurance for their continued support of the Academy Program, and netball within NSW.
2023 QBE Swifts Academy squad
- Aimee Landrigan (Camden & District)
- Ali Miller (Eastwood Ryde)
- Brooke Paterson (Randwick)
- Charlotte Raleigh (Armidale District)
- Charlotte Smith (Sutherland Shire)
- Courtney Castle (Liverpool City)
- Eloise Egan (Hills District)
- Eugenie Little (Manly Warringah)
- Freddie Schneideman (Randwick)
- Jess Conlan (Barellan & District)
- Kiara Bloor (Camden & District)
- Lauren Woods (Blacktown City)
- Nicola Barge (Sutherland Shire)
In addition to the above athletes, 2023 NSW Swifts Training Partners will also be part of the Academy Program. To view our Training Partners please click here.
