Former Silver Fern player Jenny-May Clarkson says the team will be in a better position now Janine Southby has quit as coach.
The 1 NEWS sports presenter gave her verdict on Southby stepping down from her role as Silver Ferns coach shortly after the news broke tonight.
"It was inevitable that Janine Southby was either going to resign with what came out of the independent review, or that she would have been asked to resign," she said.
"I think the right thing has been done in terms of the coach position, now it's about finding someone who can replace her seeing as they have the world champs coming up next year."
She believes the move is a good one for the team.
"I think the Ferns were in such a position that anything they do from this point on is positive for the team after the fourth place result at the Commonwealth Games."
Netball New Zealand CEO Jennie Wyllie said, "Earlier today I accepted Janine Southby’s resignation from her role as Silver Ferns head coach.
"I would like to acknowledge the contribution that Janine has made and thank her for her hard work. Janine remains a key member of the netball family, a fine coach and we look forward to having the opportunity to work with her in the future," she said.
New Zealand failed to win a Commonwealth Games medal for the first time earlier this year.
Southby said in a statement today she takes full responsibility for the failure. "I am very sad to have reached this point," she said.
"We were at a real point of transition when I was appointed and I believed it would take time to make the necessary change.
"Over the last two years I have worked hard to develop a high performance culture based on accountability and self-responsibility. I felt we were making steps in the right direction however, I have to acknowledge this hasn’t happened as quickly or as well as I would have liked.
"The results we were able to deliver through the transition were unacceptable and far less than what we were aiming for. As head coach, I have to front up to my own responsibility in producing those results and I have. I’m as gutted as anyone that we couldn’t produce the results we aimed for."
Netball New Zealand said the process for appointing a new Silver Ferns coach "will commence immediately" with the Netball Quad Series coming up in September before next year's World Cup in July.
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