Paula Griffin (born 11 July 1988 in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

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 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

) is a New Zealand

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 ...

player of Samoan descent. Griffin was named in the New Zealand U21 team for 2006. That year, she also signed with the

Auckland Diamonds The Auckland Diamonds were a regional netball team which represented Auckland- Waitakere and Counties Manukau Netball in New Zealand's National Bank Cup. For the 2008 ANZ Championship the Diamonds merged with the Northern Force to create the Northe ...

to play in the

National Bank Cup The National Bank Cup was the pre-eminent national netball competition in New Zealand between 1998 and 2007. From 2008, it was replaced by the ANZ Championship. Format In the rounds, each team played every other team once, then the top four teams ...

. She also joined the Silver Ferns squad in September 2006, and the following year made her on-court debut against Jamaica at the

2007 World Netball Championships The 2007 World Netball Championships was the 12th edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball co-ordinated by the International Federation of Netball Associations (IFNA). Sixteen nations contested the ...

in Auckland, where the Silver Ferns came in second behind Australia. With the start of 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 owned ...

in 2008, Griffin signed with Auckland-based franchise, the

Northern Mystics Northern Mystics are a New Zealand netball team based in Auckland. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Northern in the ANZ Premiership. Netball Northern is the governing body tha ...

. But after receiving little court time, she opted to transfer to the winless

Central Pulse Central Pulse are a New Zealand netball team based in Wellington. Between 2008 and 2016, they played in the ANZ Championship. Since 2017 they have represented Netball Central in the ANZ Premiership. Netball Central is the governing body that r ...

for the 2009 season. During her first year with the Pulse, Griffin scored 374 goals, placing her in the top ten shooters by volume, and in the top 20 by accuracy, in the league. Also in 2009, Griffin captained the New Zealand U21 team at the 2009 World Youth Netball Championships in the Cook Islands, where they finished second behind Australia. Later in the year, she played in the Silver Ferns at the

2009 World Netball Series The 2009 World Netball Series was the inaugural tournament of the World Netball Series. The 2009 Series was held at MEN Arena in Manchester, England from 9–11 October, and was the first major trial of the new FastNet rules that were announced by ...

in Manchester, where New Zealand won a gold medal. Griffin re-signed with the Pulse in 2010, with the team finishing 9th. After her second season with the Wellington franchise, Griffin announced that she was taking a break from netball, pulling out of the

Silver Ferns The New Zealand national netball team, commonly known as the Silver Ferns, represent New Zealand in international netball. The team take their nickname from the Silver Tree Fern (''Cyathea dealbata''), which is National symbols of New Zealand, ...

squad for the Commonwealth Games. Griffin returned to competitive netball in 2011, signing with the

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 re ...

as a starting GA alongside

Daneka Wipiiti Daneka Wipiiti (born 8 December 1982 in Hamilton, New Zealand) is a former New Zealand international netball player who played for the New Zealand national netball team, the Silver Ferns, and the Southern Steel in the ANZ Championship. Wipiiti ...

. The team had a troubled and injury-plagued 2011 season, finishing in 7th place. Despite the poor ANZ Championship season, Griffin regained her spot in the Silver Ferns side for the

2011 World Netball Championships The 2011 World Netball Championships was the 13th edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It was held in Singapore from 3–10 July. All 48 matches were played at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Sin ...

in Singapore, where New Zealand again finished second behind Australia. After the World Championships, Griffin announced that she will be returning to the Central Pulse for their 2012 campaign. She now plays for the

and signed with them for the 2015 season.

References

External links

2010 ANZ Championship profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffin, Paula New Zealand netball players Central Pulse players Southern Steel players Northern Mystics players New Zealand international netball players Netball players from Auckland 1988 births Living people People educated at Massey High School ANZ Championship players 2007 World Netball Championships players 2011 World Netball Championships players Auckland Diamonds players New Zealand international Fast5 players ANZ Premiership players