Former national netball captain and Lomaiviti Club president, Vasiti Vugakoto, is calling for changes in the leadership of Netball Fiji.

She has demanded the executives to tender in their resignation in tomorrow’s Netball Fiji Annual General Meeting in Suva.

After observing the Pearls performance these past years, Vugakoto said the change should start made from the top. She said this was also the call of the five major clubs under the Suva Netball Association.

Questions emailed to Netball Fiji president, RubyAnn Sorovaki remained unanswered when this edition went to press last night.

The 14th ranked Pearls are currently playing at the PacificAus Sports Series in Brisbane, Australia. They have lost three games consecutively.

Vugakoto said the national women’s team poor performance was directly attributed to a lack of strategic planning, inadequate high-performance programmes, poor leadership at the executive level and the onus is on council members to vote for change.

“The recent showing at the PacificAus Sports Netball Series in Australia has further reinforced this unacceptable standard, with the team failing to secure competitive results against regional rivals.

“Our council members which consist of association presidents should make a stand and decide. Do we continue with this leadership or make a major change?” Vugakoto said.

“We cannot see netball continue to go down. Our girls are suffering. The associations are suffering. The sport is suffering.

“We are to be reminded that netball was once women’s major sport in Fiji. Not anymore with our current performance.

“We are losing talented players to rugby and other sports. We are losing sponsorship,” she added.

The Suva banker said the player’s recruitment process should also be reviewed and NF has failed to prioritise the development of local netball, with grassroots and district-level competitions receiving minimal support.

“The absence of a national championship in 2024 is a glaring example of this neglect.

“Despite Fiji’s downward trajectory in international netball, there has been no clear or effective development plan put forward to rebuild and strengthen the sport.

“The lack of investment in player pathways, coaching development, and domestic competitions continues to hinder the progress of young talent and the overall growth of netball in Fiji.

“With the Netball Fiji Annual General Meeting scheduled for this Saturday (February 22) we demand the immediate resignation of the president, the entire executive committee, and all committee members to allow for a leadership transition that prioritises the development, transparency, and democratic governance of netball in Fiji.”

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