The Firebirds will face GIANTS Netball in two pre-season clashes as part of the Riverina Road Trip, taking on Nerida Stewart's much-changed team in Wagga on Friday from 7pm AEDT (6pm AEST) and then in Griffith on Sunday from 11am AEDT (10am AEST).
With a packed schedule and forecast high temperatures across the weekend, the Firebirds will take a squad of 14 for the weekend trip including new faces Kelly Jackson, Maddy Gordon and Te Paea Selby-Rickit in their first outing in purple.
Joining the squad will be training partners Jessie Laga'aia, Elsa Sif Sandholt and Sasha Flegler along with Queensland Firebirds Futures Academy athletes Lily Gribble and Jayden Molo.
"We're really grateful for this opportunity against the Giants actually," Firebirds Head Coach Kiri Wills said.
"Both teams are quite new-look line ups, so a really good opportunity to actually see where we're at. We always think we're going well in pre-season so to actually play an SSN team this early is really good."
The Firebirds are facing a Giants team led by New Zealander Whitney Souness, who was named captain last week despite having only just arrived at the club, while former Adelaide Thunderbird and Diamonds shooter Lucy Austin should prove a tough challenge for Jackson, Firebirds captain Ruby Bakewell-Doran and fellow defender Isabelle Shearer at the back.
Wills is prepared for this weekend's match ups to feature plenty of experimentation and player rotation, as the Firebirds ramp up preparations for their SSN season opener against defending premiers Melbourne Vixens at Nissan Arena on Sunday, March 15.
"We'll name 12 each day on on the bench, which I think when you play this early in the pre-season, you've got to have that flexibility," Wills said.
"It is an opportunity for the our training partners and our academy girls. Everyone will play this weekend so how good is that for some of these players?"
Both matches this weekend will be livestreamed. To watch Friday's game click here while Sunday's match is available here.
FIREBIRDS RIVERINA ROAD TRIP SQUAD
Ruby Bakewell-Doran
Mary Cholhok
Lara Dunkley
Sasha Flegler
Macy Gardner
Maddy Gordon
Lily Gribble
Kelly Jackson
Jessie Laga’aia
Jayden Molo
Emily Moore
Elsa Sif Sandholt
Te Paea Selby-Rickit
Isabelle Shearer
Tickets for the 2026 Suncorp Super Netball season are now on sale via Ticketek! Don't miss a minute of the action and secure your seat now to cheer on your Queensland Firebirds.
