In 2024, more than 1670 players in Otago and Southland had netball-related injury claims accepted by the Accident Compensation Corporation, costing the taxpayer $4.3million to help them recover.
So Dame Noeline has partnered with ACC and Netball NZ, to remind players and coaches about NetballSmart — an evidence-based framework, made up of six principles which aim to prevent injuries.
Silver Ferns lead physiotherapist Sharon Kearney recently drove a revision of the warm-up part of the programme, which focused more on the landing and deceleration components of the game.
And now Netball NZ is supporting coaches with a range of resources like videos on the warm-up.
Dame Noeline said it was the only injury-prevention programme to focus solely on improving outcomes for women.
"It is important work because our Silver Ferns come from the grassroots of our game.
"That is our pathway from local level, coming right through to high performance, to the Silver Ferns.
"We need to ensure our coaches have the resources to protect our players for the long term," she said.
Nationwide, ACC last year accepted 23,796 netball-related injuries which cost $48m to help people recover.
Netball-related injuries have been increasing and 2024 was the highest number of injuries and cost for the past five years.
Among those injuries, 373 were anterior cruciate ligament-related injuries.
"We know that an ACL is a debilitating injury that can take a player up to 12 months to recover from," Dame Noeline said.
"That has a huge impact on the person’s career and their life."
ACC’s 2024 data showed 10-14 year-olds (6306 claims) dominated the number of netball-related injuries, followed by 15-19 year-olds (4513).
Dame Noeline stressed the importance of "bedding in" the NetballSmart habits early.
"We want our young netball players to come into the system and for the NetballSmart warm-up to be second nature — it should be automatic.
"But the programme and these changes will only be effective if our community engages with it."
She said research showed that completing the dynamic warm-up reduced the chance of injury by up to 50%.
"For players, it is all about enjoyment.
"You need to look after your body and know that your body is the tool, and the more you invest in it, the more you are investing in your longevity in the game."
