The NSW Swifts will return to Ken Rosewall Arena (KRA) this Saturday at 5 pm for their Heritage Round match-up against the reigning champions Melbourne Vixens.
Heritage Round holds particular significance for the Swifts this year, as the Club marks its 30th Anniversary.
Coming off their first game at KRA this season which ended in a loss to the Fever despite a massive start, head coach Briony Akle says that the Swifts know what they want to do and what they can do.
“We started beautifully and had great confidence against the Fever, and then our heads just went down. It’s not like we don’t have the skill set there to do it, we are capable of so much more”, she said.
Captain Maddy Turner said the game just got away from them, which can happen at the elite level:
“I don’t think we went away from what we were trying to do, the tools we had just did not go our way.
“The Fever stepped up really quickly, it went to 10 quite quickly, and catching up is not the game we want to play at all”
Moving on to Round 5, the partnership with Grace Whyte and Grace Nweke on the court continued to grow.
“They have a thing those two, and it is great when you’re out on the court, and you can watch them, and know that they have the confidence to get the job done, especially as such young players,” Akle said.
Heading into Heritage Round, Turner says it feels even more important to get the win this week.
“There is something special about putting on the Yellow Dress and just showing where the Club has come from.
“We are such a successful club, and being able to celebrate where we are today is just amazing.”
Across 30 years, the Swifts have claimed seven premierships and produced some of the biggest names in Australian netball. They and the Thunderbirds are also the only teams to have won titles across all three major Australian national netball league eras.
The Swifts take on the Vixens for Heritage Round this Saturday (11th April) at 5 pm at Ken Rosewall Arena.
MATCH NOTES
- When the teams last met in the 2025 Preliminary Final the Vixens defeated the Swifts 66-65 in Sydney to advance to the Grand Final.
- The Vixens lead the Swifts with 11 wins to eight and one draw in 20 previous Super Netball meetings since 2017.
- The Swifts and Vixens have met 39 times across the ANZ Championship and Super Netball and the Swifts have won 21 matches, the Vixens 17 and there has been one draw.
- There have been 10 previous Super Netball meetings between the Vixens and Swifts in Sydney and both have won five.
- Nicola Barge made her debut for the Swifts in round four against the Fever to become Swift number 115.
- Swifts shooter Grace Nweke will play her 100th first-class match across the Australian and New Zealand competitions in Round 5 against the Vixens.
- Nweke made her elite debut in 2019 for the Northern Mystics in the ANZ Premiership where she played 79 matches before joining the Swifts in 2025. Nweke has played 20 matches for the Swifts to date.
