Sports correspondent & historian with Sideline Sid

Netball New Zealand has received a torrent of attention from the country’s media in recent months, mostly centring on the showcase premiership competition’s deficit of several million dollars and the subsequent defection of many of our top players to overseas competitions.

While a recent announcement says Netball NZ has agreed in principle to hand the domestic competition over to private ownership, the future competition is expected to differ from the current ANZ Premiership model; details around its scale, structure and broadcast arrangements are still being finalised.

Although uncertainty surrounds the game’s elite domestic future, local netball in the Western Bay of Plenty continues to thrive. Courts are full to overflowing, and a move to a new Western Bay of Plenty netball headquarters at Baypark has been signalled.

Netball originated in England in the 1890s, when the new sport of basketball was modified as a women’s game known as outdoor basketball. It was not until the early 1960s that outdoor basketball changed its name to netball.

There is evidence in the Bay of Plenty Times that outdoor basketball was played in Tauranga from the 1930s, with competition held on grass and asphalt courts using nine-a-side teams.

In 1966, the newly opened Cliff Rd Netball Courts became the headquarters of Tauranga netball, with the sport in the Western Bay rapidly growing alongside courts at Mount Maunganui and Katikati.

A major milestone came in 1992, when Tauranga and Mount Maunganui netball merged to form the Harbourside Netball Association, with its base established at the Blake Park netball courts.

Another significant milestone followed in 1998 with the introduction of the indoor premier league at the nearby Mount Sports Centre.

Today, the Tauranga Netball Centre, based at Blake Park, caters for about 6000 members and participants. The organisation, formerly known as Harbourside Netball, has grown so rapidly that it now operates six days a week to accommodate players across its 19 courts.

In July 2025, Tauranga City Council agreed to begin detailed design work for netball’s relocation from Blake Park to Baypark.

The draft master plan for Baypark proposes a multi-use community sports and recreation hub featuring athletics, netball and other court sports, speedway, gymnastics, dedicated green spaces, a playground and walkways.

The plan focuses on community sport while continuing to deliver events, entertainment and high-performance sporting opportunities.

Information from Tauranga City Council stated that the proposed Netball Multisport Centre would include an 800sq m building and 23 courts.

Fourteen courts would have asphalt surfaces and nine would be cushioned, with three of those covered. Space has also been allocated for a further six courts in the future.

The detailed designs were due to be brought back to council in early 2026 and, if approved, construction could begin. Construction was expected to take 18 months.

At the time of writing, a Let’s Talk Tauranga newsletter stated: “Construction on the new netball multisport facility at Baypark has not officially started on site yet, although detailed designs and cost reviews were finalised in early 2026.”

Current council communications indicate construction is expected to begin in 2027, with the facility targeted to open in 2028.