Layton and Thwaites swoop into Magpies colours for 2017

The NSW Swifts have been dealt a harsh blow ahead of next year’s inaugural National Netball League with star players Sharni Layton and Caitlin Thwaites both electing to move on from the team.

With the ANZ Championship wrapping up for the final time earlier this year, Australian domestic netball will enter a new phase with the Australian only, eight team national league that will commence in February 2017.

The five current Australian teams from the now defunct ANZ Championship – NSW Swifts, Adelaide Thunderbirds, Melbourne Vixens, Queensland Firebirds and West Coast Fever – will all remain. The Collingwood Magpies, Sunshine Coast Lightening and Team New (NSW) will join them.

With an array of changes underfoot, Layton and Thwaites have both signed with the Collingwood Magpies.

Both players were integral members of the NSW Swifts for the past three ANZ Championship seasons (2014-2016), making a combined 96 appearances in the Red Dress and have both seen their careers on an upward trajectory.

In both 2015 and 2016 Layton finished top of the League for most intercepts and deflections, while Thwaites was the third highest goal scorer in competition history.

NSW Swifts coach Rob Wright wished both Layton and Thwaites well for their future.

“It is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to seeing Sharni and Caitlin in Swifts colours, but they go with our utmost blessing and well wishes,” Wright said.

“Sharni has been a fantastic ambassador not only for the Swifts, but for the game itself, and it’s been my privilege to have a small part in her career.

“Caitlin is a genuinely terrific person, and epitomises our ‘Good Player, Great Person’ team ethos, so naturally will be missed both on and off the court.

“I understand the pull of playing in your home state, and on behalf of everyone at the Club and Netball NSW, I would like to wish both Caitlin and Sharni all the best in their new ventures.”

Both players were also a part of the Australian squad that won the 2015 Netball World Cup in Sydney, proving to be great team NSWIS ambassadors.

The National Netball League is set to be the world’s premier women’s sporting league, and includes a landmark five-year broadcast deal that will give fan unprecedented access to domestic and international games. READ MORE HERE.