A history of Melbourne Vixens vs Collingwood Magpies

Written by Amelia Barnes

It’s been seven years since the Vixens met the newly formed Collingwood Magpies in the first ever round of Suncorp Super Netball (SSN).

There's been 14 cross-town matches since – nine games won by the Vixens, and five by the Pies. Half of those matches have been decided by 4 points or fewer, with an average margin of 6.8.

At the end of it all, just 7 points separate the total scored in these games (Vixens 804-Magpies 797), with one final match to come this Monday in Round 13 of the 2023 SSN season.

Thank you to the Magpies for everything you’ve brought to Victorian netball and SSN.

Take a look back at some of our memorable moments and dual-club athletes.

KEY GAMES

Round 1, 2017
Vixens 58-55 Magpies

The Collingwood Magpies were the favourites to win the inaugural SSN season with a star-studded squad of Australian Diamonds, including Caitlin Thwaites, Madi Browne, Ash Brazill, April Brandley, Sharni Layton, and Kim Ravaillion.

They came up against a young but determined Vixens line-up (including current senior players Mwai Kumwenda, Kate Moloney, Liz Watson, Emily Mannix, and Jo Weston) in the first round of the season, with a clinical Vixens midcourt resulting in a 3-goal win.

Round 1, 2018
Vixens 59-58 Magpies

The Victorian Derby delivered once again in the opening round of the 2018 season with the first 1-goal game between the Pies and Vixens. The Pies won the second half, but it wasn’t enough to claw the win back after a dominant Vixens second quarter.

Watch the replay on the Netball Live app.

Round 7, 2019
Vixens 52-55 Magpies

The Magpies won their first game against the Vixens in a 3-goal thriller. A slow start from the Vixens allowed the Pies to push out to an early lead, which they sustained for the entirety of the remaining close match.

Semi Final, 2019
Vixens 62-49 Magpies

2019 saw the only finals match ever played between the Magpies and Vixens. The Pies won the previous two cross-town matchups (including the most recent by 11 goals, just one week prior) but the Vixens came out strong to win the game by 13 – the biggest margin between the two sides yet.

Round 7, 2022
Magpies 70-60 Vixens

The Magpies continued their streak against the Vixens to win their third derby match in a row following a 16-point win in Round 7 2021, and 4-point win in Round 11 2021. It was a battle of the midcourt in 2022 and the Pies came out on top by 10.

Round 14, 2022
Vixens 56-54 Magpies

The ladder was so tight in the final regular round of 2022 that no one knew exactly how many goals the Pies needed to claim a place in the finals. Collingwood were missing their in-form players Ash Brazill and Jodi-Ann Ward in this match (due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols), replaced by two temporary replacement athletes: rookie Casey Adamson, and former Vixen Renae Ingles (née Hallinan) who hadn’t played professional netball in three years.

The Magpies just lost the game, but it was a missed super shot by the Vixens in the final second that sealed the deal for the Pies. The 2-goal margin saw the Pies hold fourth spot on the ladder with a percentage of 97.56%, ahead of the NSW Swifts on 97.37%, to make finals for the first time since 2019.

Round 2, 2023
Magpies 61-62 Vixens

The most recent meeting between the Pies and Vixens started with a dominant Collingwood and concluded with an unfortunate centre pass error. Collingwood went into the last quarter up by 6, but the Vixens fought back in the final five minutes to score four super shots, including the final penalty shot by Mwai Kumwenda after the buzzer.

DUAL-CLUB ATHLETES

The following athletes have represented both the Melbourne Vixens and Collingwood Magpies on court over the past seven years.

Geva Mentor

English goal keeper Geva Mentor was one of the first international netballers to play as an import athlete in Australia. She joined the Melbourne Vixens in 2011 and played 83 games for the club, including the 2014 grand final win. During her time at the Vixens, Mentor won the Sharelle McMahon Medal in 2012, 2014, 2015, and was the runner up in 2013 and 2016.

Mentor returned to Melbourne in 2019 as the co-captain of the Collingwood Magpies after two Sunshine Coast Lightning championships and winning the 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medal with England. She has played 68 games in the black and white to date and won the club's best and fairest award in both 2019 and 2020.

Madison Browne

Following 24 games for the Melbourne Kestrels across 2006-2007, Madi Browne played 78 games for the Vixens between 2008-2016 including the 2014 premiership win. During her time at the Vixens, she won the Sharelle McMahon Medal in 2013 and 2016, and was the runner up in 2011, 2012, 2014, and 2015.

The wing attack made her Diamonds debut in 2010, won gold with Australia at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, and became the first player to win the Liz Ellis Diamond award twice (recognising the best player across the year’s national season and Diamonds campaign) in 2012 and 2014 respectively. Browne joined the Pies in 2017 as the inaugural captain, playing 36 games for the club before retiring from SSN following injury in 2020.

Caitlin Thwaites

Caitlin Thwaites made her national debut as a 15-year-old for the Melbourne Kestrels in 2002. She played for the Vixens from 2008-2010 (winning the 2009 title) and later joined the Pies in 2017. Thwaites played 29 games for Collingwood and won their 2017 best and fairest award before re-signing with the Vixens in 2019.

Traditionally a goal shooter, Thwaites reinvented herself as a goal attack in her 17th and final national season. Her last professional netball game was for the Vixens in the 2020 SSN grand final, which her side won by 2 points. Thwaites finished her netball playing career with 55 Diamonds caps (including gold medals at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and 2015 Netball World Cup) and 60 Vixens caps. She has been part of Melbourne Vixens coaching staff since 2022.

Kelsey Browne

Browne played her first minutes for the Melbourne Vixens in Round 7 of the 2015 ANZ Championship, replacing her sister Madi who suffered a ruptured ACL in the previous round. The wing attack played 11 games for the Vixens before winning two premierships with the Sunshine Coast Lightning in 2017-2018 and debuting for the Diamonds.

Browne signed with Collingwood in 2019 and has played 61 games for the club to date, including seven matches alongside sister Madi. She was named Collingwood’s best and fairest player in 2022.

Alice Teague-Neeld

An 18-year-old Alice Teague-Neeld was named as a replacement player during the 2014 Melbourne Vixens season. She signed her first Vixens contract and debuted in 2015, making 15 club appearances at goal attack over two years.

Teague-Neeld joined the Collingwood Magpies for their first two seasons, playing 17 games in black and white before moving to West Coast Fever in 2019 where she currently plays wing attack.

Sharni Norder

Before she was a Magpie, Sharni Norder (née Layton) played for multiple clubs including the Melbourne Vixens in 2008. She became a star domestic and international defender, earning 46 Diamonds caps including two Netball World Cup gold medals (2011 and 2015) and a Commonwealth Games gold medal (2014) over her career.

Norder played 28 netball games for Collingwood from 2017-2018 and played in their AFLW side from 2019-2021 before retiring as an athlete.

Gabby Coffey

Collingwood Magpies 2022: 1 game (temporary replacement player under the COVID-19 Contingency Framework)
Melbourne Vixens 2023: 1 game (training partner elevated to temporary replacement player)

Samantha Gooden

Collingwood Magpies 2017: 1 game (temporary replacement player)
Melbourne Vixens 2018: 4 games (permanent replacement player)

Renae Ingles

Collingwood Magpies 2022: 1 game (temporary replacement player under the COVID-19 Contingency Framework)
Melbourne Vixens 2008-2019: 67 games

Jacqui Newton

Collingwood Magpies 2021-2023: 27 games
Melbourne Vixens 2018-2020: 5 games (temporary replacement player 2018, training partner 2020)

Emma Ryde

Collingwood Magpies 2020: 7 games (training partner)
Melbourne Vixens 2016-2017: 7 games

Micaela Wilson

Collingwood Magpies 2017: 3 games
Melbourne Vixens 2010-2012: 3 games