The NSW Swifts are delighted to announce that Premiership-winning defensive midcourter Allie Smith has re-signed up with the Club for the 2023 Suncorp Super Netball season.
A champion with the Melbourne Vixens in 2020, Smith made the move to Sydney for the 2022 season and debuted in the Swifts’ Round 1 Grand Final rematch with the Giants, becoming Red Swift No.66 and the 100th Swift in total since the Club was founded as the Sydney Swifts in 1997.
She played in each of the Swifts’ 14 regular-season games this year, shining as the seven-time Premiers made a late charge for a fourth consecutive Finals appearance after an injury and COVID-affected opening to their title defence.
The 22-year-old debuted for the Vixens in 2020 and played in their Grand Final win over the West Coast Fever. Originally part of the Vixens’ extended squad for the 2020 Super Netball hub in Queensland, Smith backed up her debut season with a fulltime contract in 2021.
Since making the move to NSW she has enhanced her reputation at the elite level, where she primarily plays as a wing defence but can also provide cover in the defensive circle.
Head coach Briony Akle said Smith had proven to be an excellent fit for the Swifts environment.
“I think anyone watching Allie’s performances in the backend of the season could see that she had really found her groove, and she was a standout in us pushing the Fever to the brink and then getting past the Firebirds.
“People forget that in a condensed season you have way less time to connect and gel, but Allie’s energy is infectious and she can really turn a game when she takes the court.
“With another full pre-season with us and the opportunity to grow her connections with our stalwarts I feel she’s ready to take her game to the next level.
“I love how she and Tayla Fraser can interchange and both bring different, but equally positive, options to our game plan which keeps oppositions guessing. And off the court I know she has been brilliant for our environment. She’s an all-round good egg, which really matters to us.”
Smith said looking elsewhere to play in 2023 was never an option.
“I have loved every minute of my time at the Swifts so far,” she said.
“The atmospheres I’ve been lucky enough to play in, particularly as we made our Finals push in the last couple of Rounds at Ken Rosewall Arena, were best I have experienced.
“The Swifts, like the Vixens, are a legacy Club of the National League and they have been everything I expected them to be with great people on and off court.
“I love getting the opportunity to play with so many champions of the game in all areas of the court, and learning from Briony and Bec Bulley has been invaluable to my development.”
The Swifts will make further 2023 signing announcements in due course.
