Speculation regarding the front-runners for the job has been rife since coach Waimarama Taumaunu announced she would stand down after the Constellation Cup series against Australia, which finishes next Friday.
Southby, who coached the national under-21 team to a world championship title in 2013, has been the Steel's head coach the past three years.
She, former Waikato-Bay of Plenty coach Noeline Taurua, current Magic coach Julie Fitzgerald and Mystics coach Debbie Fuller are names that have been thrown around as likely replacements.
However, the New Zealand Herald yesterday reported that Taurua was out of the picture, leaving Southby and Fitzgerald to battle it out for the job.
Southby declined to comment yesterday, but did tell the Otago Daily Times earlier in the year if the opportunity to coach the Silver Ferns came up, she would ''have a really good think about it''.
Winders said it was not appropriate for Netball South to comment on whether or not Southby has applied for the role.
''Any application she may or may not have made is confidential to Janine and Netball New Zealand [NNZ],'' she said.
''However, we do recognise how hard Janine has worked in building her career as an elite netball coach and we believe she would be a strong candidate for the role, should she have chosen to apply.''
If Southby is appointed head coach of the national side, she will not be able to continue with the Steel, meaning the franchise will need to find a replacement for next year's ANZ Championship starting in April.
Should she be named assistant coach, a consultation between NNZ, the new head coach, the Steel and Southby would determine whether or not she kept her job with the franchise.
Winders said NNZ had been open with all five franchises regarding the timeline to find a replacement for Taumaunu, but admitted the timing was not ideal.
''But then I'm not sure what the optimal timing would be,'' she said.
''I believe we have been informed as much as we possibly can be given the confidentiality which needs to be in place during a recruitment process such as this.
''Should our franchise be affected by the appointment of the Silver Ferns head coach, we have the systems in place and will be ready to act to ensure the impact on the Steel team is minimal going into the 2016 ANZ Championship season.''
Taumaunu's replacement and the new assistant coach are expected to be named early next month.
