Last June, ABC Sport first reported that the Queensland Firebirds and head coach Bec Bulley had parted ways with five weeks left in the season. This news attracted widespread attention at the time and foreshadowed subsequent events.
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03-22, 2025In September, we further revealed that Netball Australia had launched a cultural review of the club following a player complaint alleging a toxic environment for athletes. This complaint triggered deep reflection on the club's internal management.
It is now March, six months later, and Netball Australia has yet to resolve the matter, leaving the future of the club and individuals involved in limbo. This lengthy investigation process has also raised concerns about how similar incidents will be handled in the future.
Defender Remi Kamo was the first Super Netball player to make such allegations through the formal complaints process. Now we must ask whether this protracted process will deter others from coming forward in the future. The outcome of this incident will directly impact other athletes' willingness to defend their rights.
Bulley has since returned to New South Wales, resuming her previous position as head coach of the Giants Academy. Meanwhile, the Firebirds made some adjustments to their Super Netball team during the off-season, recognizing the need for a fresh start. The club hired New Zealand coach Kiri Wills, who is known for creating culturally safe environments where players feel they belong.
Reportedly, one of the ways Wills has tried to inspire her new team is by having them sit down and watch the Firebirds' last championship win in the Trans-Tasman era in 2016. She hopes this will remind them of the glorious history this once-great club possesses. By reviewing history, the team's cohesion and sense of honor can be enhanced.
The club appointed new co-captains – Ruby Bakewell-Doran and Hulita Veve – and signed new imports. England midcourter Imogen Allison, who won a silver medal at the last Netball World Cup, and Ugandan shooter Mary Cholhok, who stands at 201cm, replaced retired captain Kim Ravaillion and Indigenous Diamond Donnell Wallam. Rising Queensland talent Ash Barnett also replaced Kamo. These three roster changes were made by the club prior to Wills' appointment.
Fans reacted poorly to the news that Kamo and Wallam would not be offered contracts for 2025 – especially considering Wallam finished second in the league for goals scored last season (556) and Kamo had more intercepts (17) and defensive rebounds (20) than any other Firebirds player. Their departure also made both players feel uncomfortable. They stopped following the team's social media and did not attend the end-of-season awards night.
Instead, they watched the revamped Firebirds at the Team Girls Cup in Adelaide from Auckland over the weekend, where Wallam will play for the Mystics and Kamo for the Stars. Who can blame them if they feel they have a point to prove? They have started new adventures elsewhere, while their former team finished last in the pre-season competition after failing to win a game. Their feelings are even more understandable when they themselves felt discarded and seen as problems in last year's squad.
Nevertheless, there is still a lot of goodwill in the community for the 2025 Firebirds, as fans are hopeful that the team will unite under Wills and be able to address their midcourt transition issues, especially with someone like Cholhok leading the way up front. The Steel star goal shooter created a new record for the tallest player in Super Netball's nine seasons.
They had a slow start, with their imports joining later than other teams after finishing international duties at the Nations Cup at the end of February. Their pre-season practice matches were also affected by Cyclone Alfred. Nevertheless, there were some positive signs at the Team Girls Cup as the weekend progressed, with the team reducing their losing margin from 15 goals to 2 goals across four games.
But the question remains, can they move forward and find redemption this season with Netball Australia's review still hanging over them? Wills will certainly be hoping her team can put the past issues behind them and start her coaching tenure better than last year – when they narrowly avoided the wooden spoon, winning just four of 14 games and conceding more goals than any other team (970).
The best thing for all involved would undoubtedly be to have the ongoing review concluded before the Super Netball season officially kicks off on April 5, and before Kamo begins her Stars campaign in the New Zealand premiership in May. Netball Australia has been contacted for comment but chose not to respond.
