2025 season review: NSW Swifts

By Stephanie Smarrelli


It was a tale of two halves for the Swifts this season. 
 
During the first half of the season, it looked like they would go all the way but then they faltered. 

The rest of the competition found their Achilles heel and discovered the Swifts could be stopped.  

Overall, it was a hugely successful season for the side bouncing back from a lacklustre 2024. 

They made it through to the Preliminary Final but succumbed to a surging Vixens who never said die.  
 

BEST WIN 
The Swifts registered 10 wins throughout the season, but it was their Round 8 clash against the Thunderbirds that’ll go down as their best of the year. 

They came out of the blocks firing to lead by two goals at the first break but then the Thunderbirds struck. 

The Swifts were kept uncharacteristically kept to just nine goals in the second quarter with the halftime score reading 36 to 28 it looked like the game was over.  

But the Swifts fired back, with a 4-1 start to the third term they continued to charge despite the TBirds wrestling back momentum. 

The Swifts knew they had to bring their all to the final term and they did just that. 

Maddy Turner sparked the side taking a crucial intercept early as the Swifts went on a 6-1 run. 

They claimed the last seven goals of the match while the TBirds continued to throw everything at them. 

It was Helen Housby and Sarah Klau who put the nail in the coffin. 
 
The goaler getting a key deflection and slotting a super shot to put the side ahead by two. 

While Klau took a critical intercept as soon as the TBirds drew level. 

Making the most of the opportunity, the Swifts ran down the clock and registered their eighth win in a row.  
 
MVP 
The Swifts had plenty of MVPs at different points throughout the season. 

All eyes were on NZ Silver Fern Grace Nweke who undeniably boosted the side and was rightfully awarded the club's MVP title at their awards night. 

But there was one unsung hero who also had a big impact and was able to disrupt their opposition’s flow whenever their attack started to gain momentum. 

Teigan O’Shannassy. 

Her season was cut short due to back injury that ruled her out of the Finals Series but who knows how far the Swifts would’ve gone if she was fit to play.  

She was a gamechanger for the side when she took to the court and her presence was missed in the back end of the season. 

Without O’Shannassy the Swifts were forced to rely on the inexperienced Freddie Schneideman who held her own but didn’t have the same impact across defence.  
 
In O’Shannassy’s 11 games she tallied 13 intercepts, 24 deflections and 12 rebounds. 

To put that into perspective she equalled the intercept output of defensive midcourter Sharni Lambden and took more intercepts than fellow defender Maddy Turner.  

She was second in the Swifts line up only to Origin Diamond Sarah Klau who finished second in the league for intercepts with 24.  
 

2026 
If 2025 was the year that could’ve been for the Swifts, 2026 might be the year they finally get it right. 

But it’ll be tough. 

They’ll be without leader Paige Hadley who has announced she’s due to give birth early next year. 

Hadley’s importance was on full display during the Finals Series with the star missing in their Major Semi Final loss to Fever. 

The loss was their worst performance of the season, registering a HCF Team Health Score of 109, the league’s lowest.  

Carrying an injury during the Preliminary Final, she played a full 60 minutes, but it was clear she wasn’t 100 per cent. 

She left her all out on court in that final game and almost dragged the Swifts over the line. 

In 2026, someone else will need to step up to bring the hunger and drive Hadley delivered.  

Enter Maddy Proud. 

The heart and soul of the NSW Swifts missed the 2025 season due to her own pregnancy giving birth to a baby girl, Lily in May. 

She’s contracted to the side for next season and is expected to be back and raring to go. 

And she’ll be bolstered by former teammate Tayla Fraser who returns home following a stint with the Mavericks. 

The Swifts also secured the signature of 11th player Grace Whyte who seamlessly slotted into the side throughout the season as a replacement player. 

They locked in O’Shannassy and powerhouse goaler Grace Nweke with Sophie Fawns, Verity Simmons and Allie Smith departing the club. 

In 2026, the side will need to focus on how to keep teams guessing throughout the season.  

Their run home to finals was starkly different to how they opened the season. 

Once teams found the formula to defeating them, they struggled to put wins on the board winning just two of their last eight games. 

One area they’ll need to look at is their passing. 

They topped the league for bad passes in 2025 with 47 alongside the Mavs. 

With changes to their lineup, they’ll need to cement their connections early to lower that number in the new year. 

In the close games, the most marginal error could be the difference between a win and a loss, and they’ll want to avoid something so simple unravelling their hard work.