'We need to do something': Why Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams came to netball's rescue

It began with a simple proposition - "We need to do something about netball."Over the past year, anyone with even loose connections to New Zealand sport had heard whispers about the pressure Netball New Zealand was under.Ali Williams - the 77-test All Black and, alongside his wife Anna Mowbray, part of the ownership group of A-League club Auckland FC - is closer to the country's sporting power brokers than most.By the beginning of the year Williams was increasingly hearing from his contacts just how serious the situation had become, with many fearing New Zealand might not have an elite domestic league next season.Williams felt he and Mowbray, one of New Zealand's most successful entrepreneurs, could help."Ali came to me pretty early on and said 'we need to do something about netball'," said Mowbray."He's an incredibly passionate sports person and he has been so heavily involved in everything that we've done with AFC, and when he came to me, we sort of sat down and started chatting through it."Mowbray needed little convincing."I just said to him, 'let's do it'. Let's try and figure out what we can do, what our part is to play in this journey."That simple exchange has now put the high-profile couple at the centre of one of the biggest shake-ups in New Zealand netball's history.Netball NZ on Tuesday confirmed earlier RNZ reports that it has accepted a bid by Mowbray and Williams to take over the licence to run the country's elite domestic competition from 2027, signing a non-binding term sheet with the high-profile couple.For Mowbray, there is a personal element to the decision.She grew up playing netball, describing it as a critical part of her formative years. Now her own children play "on those same courts, under the same lights, on the same chilly evenings"."When I saw that the sport was struggling, it actually broke a piece of me because we cannot take away that aspiration from our young girls," she said."We can't just love the game, we need to invest in it. We can't let our highest participation women's sport go without a pathway to the top and without aspirational players showing that pathway."That sense of obligation is at the heart of why Mowbray and Williams decided to get involved, but their ambitions go well beyond simply keeping the domestic competition alive.Their stated goal is to turn New Zealand into the "undisputed home of world netball", with Mowbray envisaging the Silver Ferns commanding the same reverence as the All Blacks."It's aspirational, and every girl who picks up a ball believes that she can actually get there," she said.It is an ambitious vision. But for now, there is little detail on how Mowbray and Williams intend to deliver it, with work now beginning on a long-form agreement between the national body and the investors.One of the few pieces of the puzzle that was revealed at Tuesday's announcement is the parties have agreed to a minimum of five teams in the new competition - raising the possibility that one of the six existing franchises could be culled.The elite domestic league will look very different in 2027.© Photosport Ltd 2026 www.photosport.nzBeyond that, the competition structure, season window, franchise licences, salary caps, and broadcast and commercial arrangements are all to be worked through by the new owners - and the clock is ticking.RNZ understands Mowbray and Williams have just three weeks to pull together the necessary deals to get the league off the ground.Mowbray hinted there had been discussions with other potential investors and team owners, but could not offer any details. She did however have a sales pitch for private investors."We're very interested to hear from anybody that wants to be part of this journey - anyone that's always dreamed of being able to inspire the next generation of Kiwi netballers up into the big leagues."One thing that we've learned through the building of Auckland FC and our work with the [Australian Professional Leagues] there is the importance of really great owners. Great owners help to build a league."Great owners help to ensure that the standards are set and that we're able to deliver something really special."Finding owners and building teams will be just one part of the challenge. Mowbray and Williams also need to turn the competition into a viable commercial proposition.Asked whether she envisaged the new league would make a profit, Mowbray's answer was blunt."I think that's going to be a long path."For now, she said the priority is stabilising the competition and figuring out how to commercialise it, attract sponsors and secure the most appealing broadcast deal possible.That is a significant challenge for a competition whose existing business model has left Netball NZ carrying millions of dollars in losses. It is also a challenge made more difficult by the fact the new league will not initially have access to many of the country's biggest stars.Anna Mowbray and husband Ali Williams own a 15 per cent stake in A-League club Auckland FC.Phil WalterWith players left in limbo while netball officials grappled with some big decisions facing the game, Netball NZ were forced to roll back its eligibility rules for the Silver Ferns, allowing players based overseas to still be eligible for the national team.The decision has seen Kiwi players flock overseas in unprecedented numbers, with 13 players taking up contracts in Australia's Suncorp Super Netball competition, including 10 of the 12 members of the Silver Ferns Commonwealth Games gold medal winning team.Several players like superstar shooter Grace Nweke (Sydney Sirens) and the Heffernan twins Kate (Adelaide Thunderbirds) and Georgia (Sunshine Coast Lightning) have signed multi-year deals.Mowbray said it has been upsetting to see so many players forced offshore due to the ongoing uncertainty."It's devastating any time we see our extraordinary and best players leaving the country - but that's where our work starts. It means that it's our job to build something that is good enough for them to come back."But secondly, this is the highest participation women's sport in New Zealand. We have depth of players here, and what is really exciting is that those players are now going to get an opportunity to shine on the court again in New Zealand - and that's an opportunity that wasn't certain a few weeks ago.Newly appointed Netball NZ chief executive Jennah Wootten said private ownership will bring much-needed capital and commercial expertise into the game.RNZ / Nick MonroNetball NZ chief executive Jennah Wootten, who only stepped into the top job three weeks ago, also had a message for those players who have already committed to playing overseas."What I want them to know is that work is now commencing on ensuring that the domestic competition that is up and running for 2027 is something enormously attractive that will bring them back to New Zealand in the not too distant future."The move to a private ownership model will mark a fundamental shift in the way netball is funded and operated, but was increasingly seen as the only way forward for Netball NZ.Facing losses of up to $6 million for the financial year, about $3.7m of which can be chalked up to the cost of running the ANZ Premiership, Netball NZ were unable to offer any guarantees there would be a league next season.The bid from Mowbray and Williams offered a way out - allowing Netball NZ to step back from the financial burden of running the league while bringing private capital and commercial expertise into the competition.But Wootten stressed that the decision was about more than simply getting the organisation's books back into balance."What this step means is that we are bringing capital and commercial capability into the sport of netball," said Wootten, "and this is commercial capability and capital that Netball New Zealand and the zones couldn't achieve on our own."