Southern Steel have retained the services of England international George Fisher for the 2022 ANZ Premiership.
The 23-year-old joined the Invercargill-based side for the 2021 season, after 12 appearances for her country and several prolific seasons in the UK domestic competition.
The squad is also boosted by the return of shooter and Otago cricket representative Georgia Heffernan, who sat out this year's campaign with a serious knee injury, suffering a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in 2019.
Silver Ferns stars Shannon Saunders, Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit and Kate Heffernan also return.
Steel coach Reinga Bloxham is delighted with the stability of her "dynamic squad".
"I think the most exciting thing has been watching it all unfold during the recruitment phase," she says. "It's a coach's dream to be able to retain the core of a successful team and have the opportunity to continue building on that."
"I'm absolutely stoked that Shannon is coming back. Watching her play and lead the team this season has just been really exciting.
"She looks like she's refreshed and just raring to go, so I think it's been great for her personal gain having a new challenge of that leadership role. She's played exceptionally well and really looks like she's enjoyed her job."
Among the new faces are shooter Saviour Tui and defender Kate Burley, both from Northern Mystics.
"Both Saviour and Kate have been players I've watched and tracked over the last couple of seasons," says Bloxham, "I thought they would fit our team, and also our culture and the community down here, so I'm really excited about what they're going to bring.
"This season showed, if you can get what's happening off the court right, then usually what happens on the court is a reflection of that. To really make sure we keep building on the culture that we are creating has been a key thing for us and that means having the right people in the environment.
"There's still a bit of the unknown and I think that element of surprise is great in that nobody can really work you out yet. These players are not new to the ANZ Premiership, but they are new to this team, and it's about how we mold them together and get them working effectively as a unit.
"I always think I've got the team to do it. I definitely think we've got the right recipe again and we know that we're going to have to put in that hard work pre-season to make sure we can gel those combinations, but I believe we've got the right people there to take us to the finals."
