WHEN you hear of our top players sleeping in cars and in tears, one can only think this is a super netball stuff-up.
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We are essentially left to watch on as Australian netball's top ranks are in complete disarray in a protracted, emotional and multi-layered pay dispute.
This is right when our community netball participation is booming with more opportunities for juniors and adults to get on the court than before the pandemic.
What this highly-public pay tussle could mean for the grassroots game is unclear, but it does not feel good when those taking the lead in the game are on shaky ground.
Only a couple of years ago there was plenty of fist pumping for netball's landmark pay deal for players in a bid to re-stake its ground as a leader in female sport amid the rise of women in non-traditional fields, namely cricket and AFLW.
Now there is talk of crippling pandemic debt and the Australian government pulling $17 million in a taxpayer-funded boost on November 30 because it could not be sure the game's governing body would spend the cash wisely.
Will this make a major dent on our community participation? This depends how much longer and bitter this dispute plays out.
Undoubtedly, emerging talent will seriously look to other sporting options. This is right when our neighbour Bendigo has earned a rare regional licence for the Victorian Netball League, strengthening a pathway for country players that had been made harder in the demise of Ballarat Pride/Sovereigns this past decade.
We also need strong sporting heroes.
Just look to the groundswell in soccer support through to the Matildas' bronze medal play-off in a home world cup in July and August. The Diamonds had won netball's world cup the week before in Glasgow.
While half a world away, it was hard to feel widespread ripple effects in excitement. The Diamonds needed a bit more sparkle on the home front.
Excitement helps generate inspiration for more youngsters picking up a ball and trying to emulate the Diamonds.
It also helps spark motivation for older players, too, who might otherwise have thought about stepping back on the sidelines. We saw what this has meant in the Central Highlands Netball League for season 2023 with a 10-club D-grade encouraging more women to play on.
You could argue this year-long pay war is a chicken-and-egg scenario: Netball Australia needs to be making money off players to be paying players more, but with the right investment in professional standards players could be drawing in greater crowds and profits for Netball Australia.
That circular debate does not help anyone.
Players have been calling for a hybrid revenue and profit share model, which would mean 20 per cent of any money generated from sponsorship deals above what is forecast would go to the players.
They are the faces of the company on which the game is built.
They call this a partnership and they feel a responsibility as the game's custodians for future generations.
Netball Victoria has called this model not viable.
Netball reporter Brittany Carter, in speaking on ABC Sports Daily podcast, has pointed to players' trust issues with a governing body: the controversial super-shot (that never translated to our grassroots courts); the late snap 2022 Super Netball grand final move to the highest bidder instead of the highest finisher; delayed Diamonds selections due to pay agreement lags; and, the Hancock sponsorship debacle.
What happens at the top sets the tone for all who follow, even if this can take a few years to filter down.
Regardless of where you sit, this is messy and uncomfortable.
There is no doubt for the game to be at its best, our top players need to feel confident, strong and happy.
This should not be unreasonable.
This netball showdown is hanging in the balance right with so many strong competitors with rising profiles snapping at netball's heels.
Women's sport is thriving and netball really should be at the forefront in these celebrations - not seemingly out of play.
