By Sarah Dyce

The Diamonds return to defend their Commonwealth Games crown at the Hydro, with seven members of the Birmingham 2022 gold medal squad backing up alongside five Games debutants in a 12-strong squad built on genuine depth of experience.

Overview

Australia’s Glasgow 2026 netball team blends five Commonwealth Games debutants, Sophie Dwyer, Sophie Garbin, Matilda Garrett, Georgie Horjus and Jamie-Lee Price, with seven returning players carrying real Games pedigree.

At 24, Dwyer and Horjus are the joint-youngest members of the squad, while vice-captain Kate Moloney, 33, is the most experienced by age. Victoria leads the state representation with five athletes, followed by three from Queensland and two each from New South Wales and South Australia.

Ones to Watch

Australia

Australia’s depth starts right at the top. Captain Liz Watson heads into her third Commonwealth Games alongside Sunshine Coast Lightning teammate Courtney Bruce and former Melbourne Vixens colleague Jo Weston, all three chasing a second consecutive gold after winning at Birmingham 2022.

Behind them sits a second tier just as proven. Moloney, Kiera Austin, Sarah Klau and Cara Koenen all return for their second campaign, having also won gold in Birmingham.

International

Tonga’s “Tala” side makes its Commonwealth Games netball debut in Glasgow, having climbed from 30th in the world rankings in 2018 to eighth today. Melbourne Mavericks goaler Uneeq Palavi will lead the Tala into their opening match, against Australia, on 25 July.

Some records take patience. Malawi’s Mwawi Kumwenda returns after a year on the sidelines to contest a record fifth Commonwealth Games. The Super Netball mainstay was the competition’s top goal scorer at both Glasgow 2014 and Gold Coast 2018.

New Zealand arrives under pressure. The Silver Ferns have missed the last two Commonwealth Games gold medal matches and missed the podium entirely at the 2023 Netball World Cup in Cape Town, with coach Noeline Taurua’s brief suspension and reinstatement adding further disruption as the team looks to reassert itself.

Sport Format

Netball is played between two teams of seven, each player restricted by position to specific areas of the court: Goal Shooter, Goal Attack, Goal Defence, Goalkeeper, Centre, Wing Defence and Wing Attack, each identified by a bib showing their position’s abbreviation. A goal is scored by shooting the ball through a ring 3.05m high, worth one point, and can only be attempted from inside the shooting circle by the Goal Shooter or Goal Attack. Players must pass or shoot within three seconds of receiving the ball. Matches run 60 minutes across four 15-minute quarters, officiated by two umpires, each responsible for one half of the court.

The 12-team field is divided into two pools of six, with every team playing each of the other five teams in its pool. The top two teams in each pool advance to the semi-finals, where the two winners play off for gold and the two losers play for bronze. The remaining eight teams contest classification matches to determine finishing positions from fifth to 12th.

Scotland qualified automatically as host nation. The other 11 teams were selected on World Netball rankings from September last year, with a requirement that at least four of the sport’s six Commonwealth Games Federation regions be represented. Europe, Oceania, the Caribbean and Africa are all represented among the 12 competing teams.

Competition Schedule

Netball runs from Saturday 25 July to Sunday 2 August 2026 at the Hydro, comprising 21 sessions across a single gold medal. Pool matches run from 25 to 29 July, with Australia opening its campaign against Tonga on 25 July. Semi-finals are held on Saturday 1 August, with the bronze and gold medal matches, and medal ceremony, on Sunday 2 August.

Fast Facts

• Netball was first played at the Commonwealth Games as a demonstration sport at Auckland in 1990, a single match between Australia and New Zealand.
• Australia has never missed a Commonwealth Games gold medal match and is the most successful team in the competition’s history.
• Only four teams have ever won a Commonwealth Games netball medal: Australia, New Zealand, England and Jamaica. South Africa, fourth in Kuala Lumpur in 1998, is the only other team to have contested a medal match.
• Players representing England, New Zealand, Jamaica, South Africa, Tonga, Uganda and Malawi in Glasgow all have experience in Australia’s Super Netball competition, a reflection of its status as the world’s premier netball league.