Young gun set for English adventure

By Matt Fotia 

Young goaler Emily Andrew is heading to the other side of the world to ply her trade next season, joining a swag of other Australian talent in the Netball Super League, after linking up with the London Mavericks. 

Andrew is different to her fellow UK bound colleagues.  

They have waited in the wings for almost half a decade before deciding to try another path, whereas Andrew is just 21 and has already spent a year as a somewhat contracted athlete. 

She says her eagerness to see court time shouldn’t be seen in a negative light, rather a desire to grow her game as quickly as she can. 

“I’m keen to take my netball to the next level and I don’t have a lot tying me down to Australia,” Andrew stated. 

“I moved into the system quite early, right after I finished year 12, so straight out of school I went straight into the SSN environment. 

“I’ve been in the system for a while.” 

The potential move first came across Andrew’s desk in the depths of winter, when she was juggling her work, studies (double degree at Monash University) and netball commitments with both the Vixens as their 11th player and with the Southern Saints in the VNL. 

As the Vixens went deeper and deeper into the season, Andrew was continually tossing up her next move. 

“It was tricky to try and balance all of it because we (the Vixens) were in the finals and performing super well, but I had this opportunity to the side and was thinking about it,” Andrew said. 

“The two signing periods didn’t line up, so I had to commit to the NSL before the SSN season finished.  

“I had to go in blindly and thought this is an awesome opportunity let’s take it.” 

Andrew was comforted by the positive reports she heard from others who had previously taken the UK plunge. 

“I’ve seen a few girls over the years go over to the UK and play netball and all of them have come back and said how much they absolutely loved it,” Andrew said. 

“I’m pumped to do something different with my netball and see another part of the world.” 

Andrew embellishes the blindness of her decision making.  

She and her management had discussions with the Vixens about her future with the club, but the make of the Victorian powerhouse’s list meant the decision was obvious if Andrew wanted to see court time. 

“We spoke to the Vixens a bit, but they have quite a young goaling end, so we thought, for now let’s go over to the UK, experience something different, get some new coaching, play with some new players and then come back,” Andrew explained. 

“They (the Vixens) agreed with me that a change of scenery would be helpful for me. 

“The end goal is still to play for the Diamonds and in the SSN.” 

Andrew will link up with some decent netball names at the Mavericks.  

England international Razia Quashie will lead a strong defensive circle, and she will share the attacking with highly rated England Fast5 representative Emma Thacker. 

But it was her conversations with the Mavericks Director of Netball, former England Rose, and Queensland Firebird, Tamsin Greenway which helped pull her across the line. 

“Tamsin is just an incredible person,” Andrew stated. 

“I talked to her over zoom and was immediately drawn to her and wanted to be around her. 

“She has such a passion for the sport, but also life outside of netball.” 

There is a fresh wave of optimism about English netball.  

The Roses were runners up at the 2023 Netball World Cup, were able to defeat the Origin Diamonds on Australian soil in September before heading to New Zealand, where they claimed the Taini Jamison Trophy. 

Andrew says everyone she has spoken to is brimming with confidence about English netball’s new era. 

“Everyone I spoke to spoke so highly of the league’s rebrand and the new era of professionalism,” Andrew said. 

“Getting to play alongside some of the England Roses is going to be an awesome opportunity, as will be experiencing a different kind of netball. 

“I’ve played a bit of stuff in New Zealand for pre-season and at underage level and their style of play is so incredibly different and I learnt so much, so I’m super keen to see what else I can add to my game.” 

Andrew believes we will continue to see young Australian talent head overseas for on court opportunities in the future but doesn’t see it as a blight on the game. 

“Looking at all the teams in the SSN, there’s not many spots and there isn’t a heap of opportunity,” Andrew explained. 

“You do hit a point where if you can’t break through you have to go somewhere else to get some consistent game time and keep building your game. 

“I think we will see a few more people heading overseas, changing it up and getting more match time. 

“We can all bring a different perspective to different competitions, and hopefully in the next few years we see all the competitions evening out. 

“It will do wonders for international netball.”