NSW Swifts defender Maddy Turner has been ruled out of the defending champions’ opening rounds of the revised 2020 Suncorp Super Netball season with an ankle injury.
The Australian Diamond is expected to miss at least four games of the condensed season which has been moved to Queensland as a result of COVID19 outbreaks in Victoria and New South Wales.
Turner travelled to the Sunshine State with the team on Thursday but will not take part in tomorrow’s Giants-hosted NSW Derby at Brisbane’s Nissan Arena (1pm AET on Channel Nine).
As a result, QBE Swifts Academy player and NSW junior Nicole Styles as been included in the team’s nominated 12 players for tomorrow’s game. They also include fellow Academy players Leilani Rohweder and 2019 Premiership winner Tayla Fraser.
Head coach Briony Akle said the loss of Turner would be a blow for any team: “Maddy has become one of the finest defenders in the world in recent years and she is a key leader for us.
“But I have a lot of faith in the players we’ve brought in and Lauren Moore has played plenty of top games at this level so she knows what needs to be done.
“Last year we had front-liners missing for almost every round that we played but we made it work and I know we have plenty ability to cover for Maddy while she gets right.
“Our medical team will be assessing how she is tracking in the next couple of weeks and we hope to have her back soon after that.”
NSW Swifts Team List v Giants – Round 1 2020
Sophie Craig (nee Halpin), Tayla Fraser, Sophie Garbin, Paige Hadley, Natalie Haythornthwaite, Helen Housby, Sarah Klau, Lauren Moore, Maddy Proud, Leilani Rohweder, Nicole Styles, Sam Wallace.
