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At the end of the Ellis era in Australian netball, things couldn’t have finished more perfectly than being on top of the world.
In a year of goodbyes, Australia bid farewell to the country’s greatest netball player Liz Ellis and its national competition after 11 years.
But a more perfect ending offering so much promise couldn’t have been planned.
After years of rebuilding, Australia fought hard and clinched the no.1 spot at the world championships in New Zealand in November.
Just days later Ellis, who put netball on the map in Australia, tearfully farewelled the sport, with her 34-year-old body unable to keep up with the demands after an impressive career spanning 16 years.
Nicknamed “old legs”, Ellis was the country’s most capped player with 122 Test matches. She was joined by teammates Laura von Bertouch and Selina Gilsenan in retiring in style after Australia’s bitter sweet world championships victory over the Silver Ferns.
“I wanted a fairytale finish and I got it. That was enough for me,” Ellis said at the time.
In a year marked by farewells, Australia also saw the last of the sport’s domestic competition – the Commonwealth Bank Trophy.
After four titles Ellis’ Sydney Swifts left the competition as the second most successful side when they beat arch rivals Melbourne Phoenix in the last final.
The country is now preparing to herald in next year’s trans Tasman competition – the ANZ Championship – which could finally lead to the sport getting onto a more professional footing.
With so much focus on the new series – which will have five Australian and five New Zealand teams – the states and territories all rallied to get a team in the mix.
Victoria, NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australian won out – with the ACT failing in its bid to secure a team.
The sport wasn’t without its controversies in 2007.
There were issues at the Adelaide Thunderbirds, as Tanya Obst took over from netball icon Marg Angove – who had been the only coach in the club’s 10-year history.
The Thunderbirds struggled throughout the season, and the pressure mounted on Obst.
Adelaide eventually came back to finish in third position.
And the dramas went further when the Howard government’s contentious work place laws made their mark in the sport.
Two firebirds players, Melanie Groves and Peta Stephens, put their positions in the team at risk by refusing to sign individual contracts and engaging in a hostile standoff in February.
Also that month, Netball Australia became concerned about a worrying drop in participation rates in the sport.
They commissioned a survey to address the issue and found that skimpy, tight fitting uniforms were keeping women away from the sport.
Players and coaches became caught up in the argument, but soon enough it died away and the attention was back on the game.
The international schedule for Australian players was more jam packed than ever in 2007.
From the start of the year, Australian coach Norma Plummer had her sights firmly on the world championships, as she engaged her side in a number of international matches to test out her new fresh squad.
Australia was on fire from the start, when they clinched the international tri-series in May, to beat England and New Zealand.
Then, in July they followed it up by taking out the international Test series with the Silver Ferns and Jamaica,
During these matches, Plummer used many fresh faces to boost her squad.
Young guns Lauren Nourse, Julie Prendergast and Natalie Medhurst all made their debuts and impressed enough to be included in the world championship team.
After a successful build-up, it was with no great surprise that Australia were the side to beat at the world championship.
They belted their opponents in the group stages, before going on to smash the Cook Islands and England in the minor finals.
Then they held off a persistent Silver Ferns to win the final in a typical trans-Tasman battle.
Despite losing veterans such as Ellis, the win gave the Australians great confidence for the future.
The ever-tireless Plummer says she’s excited about her side’s “bright future” and has already made replacements in the squad, recently adding midcourters Renae Hallinan, Madison Browne and Laura Geitz to her list.
The old era of netball won’t be forgotten – but the new one is expected to bring continued success.
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