Mowbray and Williams said they were devastated by the decision, claiming they were given no explanation for Netball NZ’s decision to walk away.
On Monday, Netball NZ chief executive Jennah Wootten told RNZ the pair drifted too far away from the key elements of the original agreed terms, ultimately prompting the board to pull the plug on the deal.
The national body said it was already working on an alternative plan to ensure an elite domestic competition could go ahead in 2027 and was working closely with the six franchises that had been part of the ANZ Premiership since 2017.
Three of the six franchises are owned by Netball New Zealand – Mainland Tactix, Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic and South Auckland-based Northern Stars.
Magic liaison manager Gary Dawson said news that negotiations had collapsed didn’t shock him.
“I had an inkling that things weren’t going well in terms of negotiations between Williams and [Mowbray], and Netball New Zealand, but it did come as a little bit of a surprise.
“I was hoping that they’d be able to come to an agreement, but obviously, the parties were too far apart and Netball New Zealand withdrew from the negotiations.”
Dawson said communication with the couple had dropped off recently.
“In the early days, we had quite good discussions with Ali [Williams] around what they were proposing and so on, but over time, those discussions became less and less, and really for the last month, we haven’t had any meaningful communication with them.”
Under the proposed financial model, any existing franchise or new investor who wanted to enter a team would have to stump up a significant amount of money to buy a licence.
On top of that, RNZ understands franchises would have to cover player salaries, travel, accommodation and support staff – costs that were previously covered by broadcast rights deals and sponsorship at the competition level.
This year, Netball New Zealand underwrote most of those costs, after the broadcast rights money dried up.
Dawson said it was not feasible for the Magic to enter a team into the planned privatised league.
“From a Magic point of view, the financial model that was being proposed just didn’t stack up for us and we wouldn’t have been able to run a team with the sort of losses that were being envisaged from the last conversations we had with them.
“I don’t know how the other teams felt, but certainly from a Magic point of view, the financial model was not sustainable, and not something that we would want to put our time, resources and investment into.”
Southern Steel, Wellington-based Central Pulse and Auckland-based Northern Mystics are owned by their respective netball zones, and stand on their own feet financially.
Pulse chief executive Ann Hay said it would be stretched to sustain a team in the proposed league.
“We were looking at it,” she said. “Certainly, it was challenging and we had a lot of work to do to be able to put up a team.”
Hay said she backed Netball New Zealand’s decision.
“In that, I’m sure that they have made a really hard decision and have taken into account the long-term potential impacts on the whole of netball. It would not have been an easy decision that they’ve made, so I do wonder what the potential impacts were in years to come.”
Hay said it had started working with Netball New Zealand on the alternative plan for next year.
“Everybody is really focused on how we achieve something for next year. I am optimistic, we’ve got a very short space of time to do that work, but I think we have to make something happen.”
Dawson said Netball New Zealand had to weigh up the long-term impacts of handing over control of the domestic league to investors.
“It’s my understanding that Ali Williams and Anna Mowbray significantly changed what was in that term sheet to the point that it was just untenable for Netball New Zealand to agree with what they wanted.
“Obviously, they’ve got to a position where they just couldn’t hand over netball at this level to Ali and Anna in the way that Ali and Anna wanted.
“It is vitally important that they remain the guardians of the game, and that they are looking after the heart and soul of netball.”