Super Netball Round-Up: Hadley's shock return 10 weeks post-baby

Round nine felt rather wholesome.

On Mother's Day weekend, Super Netball paid tribute to the women who shape our game and celebrated the mums entertaining us in the world's best league.

Following last year's baby boom, there are now eight mothers playing in 2026:

Romelda Aiken-George, Mary Cholhok, Gina Crampton, Emily Mannix, Maddy Proud, Shamera Sterling-Humphrey and Jane Watson. Oh, and Paige Hadley of course, who returned to the court on Saturday just 10 weeks after giving birth to her son Tully.

We're going to spotlight Hadley's story this week. Her shock return is one example of what makes our female-led sport so great. These athletes continue to defy expectations, break taboos and redefine what's possible.

We also want to celebrate Aiken-George, who levelled Cath Cox's 12-year record of 254 national netball league appearances. Next week, in round 10, she'll break it, so more on her then.

In terms of results, there were no changes to the ladder for the top four but there was movement below the finals line. On Saturday, the NSW Swifts held their annual Pride Bowl against the Sunshine Coast Lightning, championing LGBTIQA+ diversity and capping Hadley's return with a 70-56 win. This saw them leapfrog both Queensland sides to join the race for fourth place.

Teams that have struggled to find consistency are starting to become visibly frustrated as we near the pointy end of the season. There were sprays in the huddles of the Firebirds, West Coast Fever and Melbourne Mavericks. Two of these had the desired effect.

Defender Fran Williams told her West Coast Fever teammates they needed to stop "feeling sorry for themselves" and "having a pity party," as they lost to the Adelaide Thunderbirds, 65-45.

Queensland Firebirds coach Kiri Wills let the mic drop during a timeout in the third quarter, when she asked her side to take responsibility for their poor transition and then stormed to the bench. They won the period but could not save the match against the Melbourne Vixens, 71-48.

Mavericks coach Gerard Murphy demanded more of his attackers, "You're not awake clearly because you can tell by the way you're playing out there." They went on to beat the Giants 60-41 and tally their third straight victory for the first time ever as a club.

If you missed it, don't worry — we'll get you up to speed with our Super Netball Round-Up.

Hadley's speedy return from pregnancy

Last August, less than a month after playing a full 60 minutes in a preliminary final, Swifts legend Paige Hadley announced her pregnancy.

The then-captain of the club and Aussie Diamonds vice had actually found out back in round four but decided to keep it close to her chest.

Straightaway, she knew she wanted to continue playing and post-birth try and make it back at some point during the next season, knowing a career as an elite athlete doesn't last forever.

"In the netball world, news spreads quite easily, so that was tough in itself playing pretty much the whole season pregnant and not letting your teammates know," Hadley told ABC Sport.

"When I came into the system, I was really young at 21, I never thought I would be one of these superwomen that had a break from netball and were able to return like this.

"One day I'll be able to show Tully what all these mums have achieved at the highest level."

Hadley reached out to fellow mothers in women's sport who had come back quickly, such as former Diamond Gretel Bueta, who made headlines in 2021 for returning four months on, and rugby league footballer Caitlan Johnston-Green, who returned after 11 weeks to the NRLW.

They encouraged her to stay as fit as possible and see a pelvic floor physiotherapist, so Hadley kept training with the Swifts until she was about 38 weeks pregnant.

She sought out the services of a physiotherapist outside of netball, Kate Leslie, who currently works with the Sydney Sixers in the WBBL, and saw her regularly pre and post-birth.

After Tully entered the world, Hadley did light work in the gym and her pelvic floor exercises before she was cleared to return to running after five weeks. The Swifts and Diamonds put a program together and here we are.

Originally earmarked to return in round 10 but getting medical clearance early, coach Briony Akle offered Hadley the opportunity to play at home on Saturday in front of her family and friends on the Mother's Day weekend.

Of course, Hadley acknowledges everybody has different circumstances and that she wouldn't have been able to focus on her health so intently without the support from her own mother Sandra and her fiancé Jordan.

Although it felt like a "dream come true" and the crowd gave their longest-serving Swift a big cheer in the second quarter when she appeared in centre for 11 minutes — managing one feed and six second-phase receives — Hadley has sadly copped some hate online.

From the outside looking in, people have questioned how she has pulled this off so quickly, if it's healthy and why she'd even want to come back so soon. But what we've got to remember is this is an elite athlete in a professional sporting environment.

Hadley has been playing netball at the top level for 14 years and has rehabbed injuries many times. She knows her body better than most and what it's capable of.

She says it's been hurtful to read the negative comments and was teary talking about the topic.

"This has been a really challenging conversation … My passion for the game is stronger than ever, so why should I have to choose between becoming a mum and playing netball?

"Unfortunately, throughout this whole process, not everyone was in my corner, some thought it was a joke or far-fetched … I had all of those comments: 'Why are you even trying, just go be a mum' and 'Once he's here you won't even want to be a netballer.'

"Everyone seems to have a different opinion on my return but the thing about pregnancy and motherhood is it is different for everyone.

"I love my little baby boy tenfold, I would do anything for him, so to hear comments like, 'Paige should be home with her son', that's really hard.

"He is my priority, but I also want women to know you don't have to choose between becoming a mum and your career.

"He's spending time with people that are obsessed with him when I'm not there, smothering him in kisses, sending me photos of him smiling.

"I hope when he's older, he realises that his mum is brave and courageous and you don't have to choose one single thing to define you.

"No-one says that to my partner, so why should they say that to me?

"I want to show my son that anything is possible."

All players at this level want to experience the major tournaments and Hadley admits she'd be lying if she said she didn't want to be on the plane to Glasgow in July, where her Diamonds teammates will be aiming to defend the Commonwealth Games gold medal they won in Birmingham.

Hadley was part of that campaign but has had a rather unlucky run with the event. In 2014 she injured her knee, in 2018 she missed out on selection and in 2022 she was finally part of the team but only managed to play limited minutes throughout the group stages due to a calf injury.

The 65-Test capped leader acknowledges she's racing the clock to be fit enough and says although she'd love to be there, her priority right now is focused on her work with the Swifts.

Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich will announce the nationally contracted squad for this year on May 31, and the team will be selected mid-June.

There is huge competition for a spot in the midcourt, but nothing beats experience, so it will be interesting to see if Hadley can get enough court time to plead her case.