Jane Watson (born 7 March 1990) is a New Zealand netball international. She was a member of the

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

teams that won the

2019 Netball World Cup The 2019 Netball World Cup (also known as the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 15th edition of the INF Netball World Cup. It was held from 12–21 July 2019 at the Liverpool Arena in Liverpool, England with match ...

and the

2021 Constellation Cup The 2021 Constellation Cup, also known as the Cadbury Netball Series, was the 11th Constellation Cup series between New Zealand and Australia. The series featured four netball test matches, played in March 2021. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic ...

. Watson has also played for both

Mainland Tactix Mainland Tactix are a New Zealand netball team based in Christchurch, Canterbury. Between 1998 and 2007, as Canterbury Flames, they played in the Coca-Cola Cup/National Bank Cup league. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Champions ...

and

Southern Steel Southern Steel are a New Zealand netball team based in Invercargill. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball South in the ANZ Premiership. Netball South is the governing body that ...

in the

ANZ Championship The ANZ Championship, also known as the Trans-Tasman Netball League, is a former netball league featuring teams from both Australia and New Zealand. Between 2008 and 2016, it was the top-level league in both countries. The competition was own ...

and the

ANZ Premiership The ANZ Premiership is the top level netball league featuring teams from New Zealand. In 2017 it replaced the ANZ Championship, which also included teams from Australia, as the top level netball league in New Zealand. It is organised by Netball ...

. In

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

she was a member of the Steel team that won the inaugural ANZ Premiership title. She was named ANZ Premiership Player of the Year in both 2017 and

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...

. In April 2022, Watson was included on a list of the 25 best players to feature in

netball leagues in New Zealand Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

since 1998.

Early life, family and education

Watson was born and raised in the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasma ...

. She is the daughter of Mary and Ross Watson. She initially grew up on her parents farm in

Cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

before the Watsons moved south to a new farm at Millers Flat on the

Clutha River The Clutha River (, officially gazetted as Clutha River / ) is the second longest river in New Zealand and the longest in the South Island. It flows south-southeast through Central and South Otago from Lake Wānaka in the Southern Alps to the ...

. As a youngster, she played

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

and only began playing

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

because her school in Millers Flat didn't have a football team. Between 2005 and 2007, Watson attended

St Kevin's College, Oamaru ('To Do and To Teach') , established = 6 February 1927; years ago , type = Integrated co-educational secondary , affiliations = Roman Catholic, Christian Brothers, Dominican Sisters , founder ...

as a boarder. In her last year at St Kevin's, Watson suffered from

heart problems Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, he ...

and subsequently had to wear a

pacemaker An artificial cardiac pacemaker (or artificial pacemaker, so as not to be confused with the natural cardiac pacemaker) or pacemaker is a medical device that generates electrical impulses delivered by electrodes to the chambers of the heart ei ...

for three years from the age of 17. In 2010, at the age of 20, she also dealt with the death of her partner. After returning from escorting his body to

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

, she caught

diphtheria Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild clinical course, but in some outbreaks more than 10% of those diagnosed with the disease may die. Signs and s ...

. Watson spent three days in isolation at Timaru Hospital before being transferred to

Christchurch Hospital Christchurch Hospital is the largest tertiary hospital in the South Island of New Zealand. The public hospital is in the centre of Christchurch city, on the edge of Hagley Park, and serves the wider Canterbury region. The Canterbury District He ...

. She lost significant weight from the illness. Between 2008 and 2010, Watson attended Lincoln University on a netball scholarship and gained a degree in Recreation Management specialising in sport. Between 2011 and 2012 she attended the

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was ...

where she gained a Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching and Learning.

Playing career

Early years

In 2011, Watson was a member of a Canterbury team that finished as runners-up to Otago in the under-21 final at

Netball New Zealand Netball New Zealand is the national body which oversees, promotes and manages netball in New Zealand, including the Silver Ferns. In 2019, 137,713 players were registered with Netball New Zealand, the governing body for organised netball in the ...

's Age Group tournament. She was subsequently included in the under-21 team of the tournament.

Lincoln University

Watson played netball for Lincoln University in local

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

competitions.

Mainland Tactix

Between

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

and

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, Watson made 30 senior appearances for

in the

. After three seasons playing for

, Watson re-joined Tactix ahead of the

2018 ANZ Premiership season The 2018 ANZ Premiership season was the second season of Netball New Zealand's ANZ Premiership. With a team coached by Reinga Bloxham, captained by Wendy Frew and featuring Gina Crampton, Shannon Francois, Te Paea Selby-Rickit and Te Huinga ...

. Watson captained Tactix between 2018 and

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

. On 5 May 2019, Watson made her 100th senior league appearance during a 2019 Round 11 match against

Northern Stars Northern Stars are a New Zealand netball team based in South Auckland. Since 2017 they have competed in the ANZ Premiership. The team was named after the Matariki star cluster which is also featured on the team's logo. They were grand finalis ...

. In

and

, Watson captained Tactix to two successive grand finals. In 2020 she was also named ANZ Premiership Player of the Year. In April 2022, Watson was included on a list of the 25 best players to feature in

since 1998. Watson will miss the 2022 ANZ Premiership season due to pregnancy. In June 2022, Watson announced she would back in 2023 to play for Tactix. Despite announcing Watson and her partner would move to Ōtaki in 2024 she was signed once for the 2024 season with the

Southern Steel

Between

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

and

, Watson played for

, initially in the

and later in the

. In 2016 she was a member of the Steel team that finished the season as minor premiers. She also played her 50th ANZ Championship game. In

she was a member of the Steel team that won both the inaugural

and Super Club titles. She was subsequently named 2017 ANZ Premiership Player of the Year ;ANZ Premiership statistics , - style="background-color: #eaeaea" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center;", Steel , 0/0, , ?, , 18, , ?, , ?, , 41, , 104, , 109, , 3, , 16 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, style="text-align:center;",

Tactix TacTix is a two-player strategy game invented by Piet Hein, a poet well known for dabbling in math and science, best known for his game Hex. TacTix is essentially a two-dimension version of Nim; players alternate moves, removing one or more to ...

, , 0/0, , ?, , 19, , ?, , ?, , 31, , 71, , 127, , 34, , 16 , - style="background-color: #eaeaea" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

, style="text-align:center;",

, , 0/0, , 0, , 30, , 25, , 0, , 40, , 96, , 117, , 14, , 15 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center;",

, 0/0, , 5, , 15, , 99, , 10, , 20, , 72, , 75, , 19, , 15 , - style="background-color: #eaeaea" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center;",

, 0/0, , 0, , 12, , 0, , 0, , 15, , 78, , 109, , 10, , 17 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=2, Career ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

New Zealand

Watson made her senior debut for

on 27 August 2016 against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

during the 2016 Netball Quad Series. She was a prominent member of the New Zealand team that won the

. She was also a member of the New Zealand team that won the

. On 3 March 2021, during the same series, Watson made her 50th test appearance for New Zealand. Alongside

Gina Crampton Gina Crampton (born 7 December 1991) is a New Zealand netball international. She was a member of the New Zealand teams that won the 2019 Netball World Cup and the 2021 Constellation Cup. Crampton was also a member of the Southern Steel teams th ...

, she also co-captained the team in the absence of

Ameliaranne Ekenasio Ameliaranne Ekenasio (née Wells; born 11 January 1991) is an Australian-born, New Zealand netball player. She currently plays for Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic in the ANZ Premiership. Ekenasio is known for her high work rate and smooth long-rang ...

. Watson missed the 2021–22 international season due to a combination of pregnancy and recovering from ankle surgery. Watson was named in the 2022–23 squad after returning from maternity leave. Watson was selected for the

2023 Netball World Cup The 2023 Netball World Cup will be the sixteenth staging of the premier competition in international netball, contested every four years. The tournament will be held from Friday, 28 July to Sunday, 6 August at the International Convention Centre ...

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second larges ...

Personal life

In 2017 Watson got engaged to Will Carter, a blackcurrant farmer. In 2021 Watson announced she was pregnant with her partner, Santana Nicholls-Hepi. Santana has played netball for the

New Zealand Defence Force The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; mi, Te Ope Kātua o Aotearoa, "Line of Defence of New Zealand") are the armed forces of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the national security of New Zealand and her Realm of New Z ...

. In May 2022 the couple announced the arrival of their daughter Tia.

Honours

;

Netball World Cup The Netball World Cup is a quadrennial international netball world championship organised by the World Netball, inaugurated in 1963. Since its inception the competition has been dominated primarily by the Australia national netball team and t ...

**''Winners'':

Constellation Cup The Constellation Cup is an international netball competition contested by Australia and New Zealand. The competition features a series of test matches. The two teams have competed for the trophy since 2010. Australia won the inaugural series a ...

**''Winners'':

Taini Jamison Trophy The Taini Jamison Trophy is an international netball tournament hosted in New Zealand by the Netball New Zealand organisation. The trophy is contested by the New Zealand national team and at least one touring national team each year. Consequently ...

**''Winners'':

Fast5 Netball World Series The Fast5 Netball World Series is an international Fast5 netball competition that was contested for the first time in October 2009. The new competition features modified Fast5 rules, and has been likened to Twenty20 cricket and rugby sevens. The ...

**''Winners'': 2016 ;

**''Winners'':

**''Minor premiers'': 2016 * Netball New Zealand Super Club **''Winners'':

;

**''Runners up'':

;Individual Awards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Jane 1990 births Living people New Zealand netball players New Zealand international netball players New Zealand international Fast5 players 2019 Netball World Cup players Netball players from Christchurch Mainland Tactix players Southern Steel players ANZ Premiership players ANZ Championship players People educated at St Kevin's College, Oamaru University of Canterbury alumni Lincoln University (New Zealand) alumni New Zealand schoolteachers