Commonwealth Bank Trophy
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The Commonwealth Bank Trophy is the premier netball league in Australia. It is arguably the first semi-professional national netball competition in the world. As a result, the overall standard of the competition is generally higher than that of domestic leagues in other countries.
After some years of attempting to organise a national competition, in 1996, Netball Australia succeeded in finding a sponsor in the Commonwealth Bank. The competition began the following the year, with eight teams.
The Commonwealth Bank Trophy takes the format of a fourteen-round round-robin competition, followed by a finals series involving the top four teams. Since its inception, the competition has remained capped at eight teams. As a result, when new teams were added (the AIS Canberra Darters in 2002 and the Hunter Jaegers in 2004), other teams were axed to make way. Each team derives its name from some form of bird.
2004 Teams
- Adelaide Thunderbirds
- AIS Canberra Darters
- Hunter Jaegers
- Melbourne Phoenix
- Melbourne Kestrels
- Perth Orioles
- Queensland Firebirds
- Sydney Swifts