Five debutants named in Australian Diamonds netball squad

Netball Australia has unveiled the Diamonds squad for 2021/21.

The announcement of the team follows the decision from Netball Australia earlier this week to hold the Constellation Cup twice in 2021, amid the hurdles presented by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. That means the team will not play an international match in 2020, but 2021 will hopefully see those fixtures return as planned.

Netball Australia is in the process of working with the Queensland government to get a Diamonds camp hosted in Brisbane following the Super Netball grand final on October 18.

The Diamonds squad features five debutants including Verity Charles, Sophie Garbin, Kim Jenner, Cara Koenen and Maddy Proud. Players were chosen by a panel of national selectors Anne Sargeant and Michelle Wilkins, and Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich.

"Selection definitely hasn't been an easy task – we have such a great depth of talent within our system across every position on the court and I congratulate those that have been selected," Marinkovich said of the squad.

"This squad showcases an incredible breadth of experience and new emerging talent. We have a strong vision towards our marquee events, the 2022 Commonwealth Games and 2023 Netball World Cup, and I look forward to further technically and strategically developing this group and building on our connection and cohesion under pressure.

"Our Australian Development Squad will be named within the next couple of weeks and this list will truly capture the depth of our elite talent. We will continue to monitor and track players leading into an exciting 2021 international netball calendar."

2020/21 Origin Australian Diamonds Squad

• Jess Anstiss - West Coast Fever/Western Australia

• Kiera Austin - GIANTS Netball/New South Wales

• Caitlin Bassett - GIANTS Netball/Western Australia

• Gretel Bueta - Queensland Firebirds/Queensland

• Courtney Bruce - West Coast Fever/Western Australia

• Verity Charles - West Coast Fever/New South Wales

• Sophie Garbin - NSW Swifts/Western Australia

• Paige Hadley - NSW Swifts/New South Wales

• Kimberley Jenner - Queensland Firebirds/Queensland

• Cara Koenen - Sunshine Coast Lightning/Queensland

• Sarah Klau - NSW Swifts/South Australia

• Jamie-Lee Price - GIANTS Netball/New South Wales

• Maddy Proud - NSW Swifts/South Australia

• Emily Mannix - Melbourne Vixens/Victoria

• Kate Moloney - Melbourne Vixens/Victoria

• Gabi Simpson - Queensland Firebirds/New South Wales

• Liz Watson - Melbourne Vixens/Victoria

• Jo Weston - Melbourne Vixens/Victoria

• Steph Wood - Sunshine Coast Lightning/Queensland