The NSW Swifts have re-signed Diamonds quartet Paige Hadley, Sharni Layton, Susan Pettitt and Caitlin Thwaites for next trans-Tasman netball season.
Co-vice captain Abbey McCulloch and versatile shooter Stephanie Wood have also re-committed as the Swifts announced the return of six of their 12-player roster for the 2016 ANZ Championship.
Last month the Swifts reached their first grand final since claiming the inaugural title in 2008, but went down to the Queensland Firebirds by one point in the dying seconds.
Coach Rob Wright said the retentions are vital pieces of his side as they aim to up the ante again in a bid to claim the club's second premiership.
"We showed in the second half of the season both the attractive and effective netball we desire to play at the NSW Swifts," he said.
Wright will now turn his attention to securing the services of mainstay and Diamonds vice-captain Kimberlee Green, who needs to be accommodated under the salary cap before the Swifts are required to submit their final roster by September 1.
But the coach said there was no reason to be concerned at this stage.
"I would hope we can get her signature before the World Cup, but we've got to work through it all," Wright told Fairfax Media.
"There's nothing sinister there. I'm hoping we see Kim named in the next batch of signings ... there are some quite tight restraints around the salary cap and we want to do the best for our entire team."
The future of England player Jade Clarke remains up in the air.
Hadley, Layton and Thwaites were selected in the final 12-strong Australian side to defend their World Cup title in Sydney in three weeks' time, and joined the team on the Gold Coast last week for the first of two training camps.
Former world championship player Pettitt was once again overlooked by Diamonds coach Lisa Alexander despite a stand-out season with the Swifts during which she scored 422 goals at 88 per cent.
Veteran defender Julie Corletto will retire after the World Cup while shooter Erin Hoare will leave the club to do a PhD in psychology at Oxford University.
Share
