Fran Williams moved to Australian Suncorp Super Netball team West Coast Fever this season after playing in the Netball Super League since 2016; watch the Netball Super League throughout the season live on Sky Sports.
Sunday 3 March 2024 08:52, UK
Fran Williams says England have the talent, but a professional set up will allow the national side to progress and compete against the best in the world.
After recently moving to Australian team West Coast Fever, Fran Williams sat down as part of this week's Sky Sports Netball: Off The Court podcast all about the art of defending, giving insights into her experiences thus far in the Suncorp Super Netball league.
The former Netball Super league player said that she is enjoying the challenge of playing in the Australian domestic league, which as it stands remains the only fully professional league in the world and is pushing for the English league to follow suit, in order to improve the national side.
"The main thing I've noticed already in the last three weeks of being here, is that kind of professional set up they have around their clubs and their training environments", the 26-year-old said.
"I just think that leads from a staff and players' perspective the way the intensity and standards are in training, it is something I'm not used to day in, day out.
"I think the talent in England and our team is 100 per cent there, and if you can get the other things around our game right to harness the talent and get it world class, we will 100 per cent be able to compete with the Diamonds and the teams over here.
"So I think it's a really exciting place to be for me, I'm already learning so much and I really hope that's something that when I come back to England, I'll be able to bring into the training environment."
Williams has voiced her opinions about the ongoing development of netball in the UK and is a player representative for the Netball Players Association.
"I am the biggest advocate for making sure our league gets to that place (professional). I know how hard people are working to make that happen and that's a really exciting place to be," she said.
England were beaten twice in the Vitality Nations Cup in January against Australia. Once in a closely contested match where the Diamonds won 59-61. But in the final match, in which the world champions won the Vitality Netball Nations Cup in Leeds, the Roses were dominated in a 69-49 defeat.
Asked by Tamsin Greenway if she wanted to discuss that Nations Cup game, Williams said you have to be able to confront your wins and loses, but was optimistic about the lessons that England can learn from those matches against the Diamonds.
"Me and Sunday (Aryang) were straight away on the banter with it," Willams said.
"I think I came out with discussing it straight away just so that I can get it out there and air it on the table, and great to know it's not a sensitive topic.
"But it's always interesting bantering them about it because they have such confidence, we could have had a close game with them the week before and then comes finals time and they always know they're going to have it in the bag, that's something we've got to look to change.
"Not just in the way we play netball but also in our mindset and the way we attack finals as an English team. But something I definitely think we have got in our capability of doing."
Williams is one of four English players in the Suncorp Super Netball League, but the only defender. When asked about the impact the league can have on her as a player, she reiterated its professional structure and playing against the best in the world is improving her game.
"For me, the enjoyment of being able to be a full-time athlete and encompass everything that goes around not just playing netball and turning up for training, things like the way recovery is done or work at the gym, nutrition, the medical, it's so on tap here," she said.
"You are so well supported that being in that professional environment is something that, just at the moment, we don't have at home.
"So, that's one of the driving factors for wanting to come and play in this league and just the competitiveness week-in, week-out, seeing all the other international players.
"I can now call Jhaniele (Fowler) a teammate, one of the top international superstars of all time in our sport and I'm getting to go against her three times a week on court and be around her all day.
"I'm learning stuff from an English perspective about playing against these Jamaicans, but also learning from them as well and that's a really exciting place to be, so for me personally it was an exciting opportunity.
"Whether that's going to be for everyone I don't know, it's a massive lifestyle change, far away Australia, I'm starting to realise that with time zones and things like that. But it's not for everyone, it's an opportunity I'm really excited by and at my age, I guess my thoughts were just, why not?"
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