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Sydney to host inaugural Spirit Series
🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea /Sports

Sydney to host inaugural Spirit Series

From Post-Courier · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

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  • Sydney will host the inaugural Spirit Series, an international netball tournament for First Nations and Indo-Pacific women, from July 8-11, 2026.
  • The event celebrates pride, culture, and excellence, featuring Netball Australia's First Nations team, the Black Swans, and national teams from Fiji, PNG, and Singapore.
  • Held during NAIDOC Week, the series aims to foster cultural exchange, athlete development, and strengthen regional connections through sport.

Sydney is set to host the inaugural Spirit Series, a groundbreaking international netball tournament celebrating pride, culture, and excellence among First Nations and Indo-Pacific women. Scheduled for July 8-11, 2026, at Netball Central, the event will showcase Netball Australia's First Nations team, the Black Swans, competing against the national teams of Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Singapore.

The Spirit Series is an opportunity to celebrate and elevate First Nations and Indo-Pacific women in netball while creating meaningful cultural exchange and connection through sport.

— Ali Tucker-Munro, Netball Australia General Manager – First NationsTucker-Munro described the tournament's purpose in celebrating culture and connection through sport.

The tournament aligns with NAIDOC Week, an annual celebration recognizing the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This initiative is a collaboration between Netball Australia and the Australian Government, supported by PacificAus Sports, the Confident Girls Foundation, Suncorp, and Arrpwere.

This event is about acknowledging the spirit and importance of cultural pride, visibility and inspiring communities, while honouring the cultures and stories that make our game stronger.

— Ali Tucker-Munro, Netball Australia General Manager – First NationsShe further elaborated on the event's focus on cultural pride and community inspiration.

Beyond the eight elite international matches, the Spirit Series will feature culturally-led community engagement activities. These are designed to inspire the next generation of athletes and build stronger connections across the region. Ali Tucker-Munro, Netball Australia General Manager – First Nations, highlighted the series' role in celebrating and elevating First Nations and Indo-Pacific women in netball, fostering cultural exchange and connection.

The Spirit Series creates a unique high performance environment for emerging athletes, coaches and umpires to gain valuable international experience.

— Megan Simpson, Netball Australia Executive General Manager – NetballSimpson explained the developmental benefits of the tournament for athletes and officials.

Megan Simpson, Netball Australia Executive General Manager – Netball, emphasized the tournament's importance for athlete and official development. The Spirit Series will provide a unique high-performance environment for emerging athletes, coaches, and umpires to gain valuable international experience. This initiative aims to build stronger development opportunities and support netball's future growth in Australia and the Indo-Pacific. Coaches from Fiji and PNG also expressed excitement, viewing the series as a crucial opportunity to test their squads and prepare for major international events.

Through initiatives like the Spirit Series, we’re building stronger development opportunities and supporting the future growth of netball across Australia and the Indo-Pacific.

— Megan Simpson, Netball Australia Executive General Manager – NetballShe highlighted how the series contributes to the overall growth of netball in the region.
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Originally published by Post-Courier. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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