Southern Blast midcourter Charlotte Lourey has been called into the Southern Steel for the remainder of the season.
The wing attack has been in and out of the side as injury cover most of the season, but has now been named as a permanent replacement for the Steel’s remaining three ANZ Premiership games.
Lourey replaces Ivari Christie, who is the latest Steel casualty to be ruled out for the season after undergoing an ACL reconstruction.
Lourey becomes the eight replacement player for the Steel this season after the injury toll continues to rise for the Steel.
Christie joins George Fisher, Shannon Saunders and Jen O’Connell on the sidelines. Taneisha Fifita also missed a handful of games through concussion.
Steel chief executive Sonya Fleming acknowledged it had taken its toll.
"It is never easy to deal with injuries to your team-mates and I have been impressed by the resilience demonstrated by our athletes and the management team", she said.
"Every new player who has stepped into our environment has slotted in really well and that speaks volumes about both the team’s culture and high-performance environment we have created.
"It is also testament to the pathways we have developed from the Blast to the Steel as we nurture the talent coming through in our sport.
"I am proud of how each of those Blast players — Ella and Grace Southby, Laura Blamer and now Charlotte — have transitioned to the big stage of the ANZ Premiership."
