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This year's ANZ Championship season begins on Saturday 20 March, three weeks earlier than 2008 and 2009, because of the domino effect the Commonwealth Games has on the international competition schedule.
All five of the New Zealand teams have plenty to play for in 2010, with a Grand Final yet to be hosted here, and the Championship trophy unseen on this side of the Tasman. "No stone unturned" is the common theme of their quest for a place in the Finals Series, and the ultimate prize, the championship title.
In 2009 Australian and New Zealand teams filled alternate positions on the Minor Premiership table, but the Australians had the edge overall, claiming 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th spots, before the Finals Series produced an all-Australian Grand Final. Interest will again focus on the likely Finals contenders in 2010, as they emerge during the main competition, but the stakes will be high in every single game, as teams fight for precious points and the chance to improve on their 2009 finish.
A highlight of the second season was that five teams (Melbourne Vixens, Adelaide Thunderbirds and West Coast Fever from Australia; Southern Steel & CanterburyTactix from New Zealand) did advance on their 2008 placings. Although Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic dropped from second to third, they had a far better season than 2008 champions NSW Swifts whose collapse to ninth place was both spectacular and relatively unexamined.
Central Pulse didn't improve on their inaugural tenth placing, but they did put up one of the most thrilling performances of 2009 when they defeated the Swifts 53-52 in Round 13. That match, more than any other, demonstrated all the possibilities of the trans-Tasman competition.
Together, the five New Zealand sides have made 29 player changes for Season Three, with 14 players making their ANZ Championship debuts. Although the team rosters include eight players ineligible for New Zealand national selection, the same as 2009, a trend towards young, local talent is evident in this year's signings. They include Ashleigh Smith (Steel), Amy Christophers (Magic), Sulu Tone-Fitzpatrick and Kayla Cullen (Mystics), all members of the 2009 New Zealand Secondary Schools team, which won the Trans-Tasman tournament. Tone-Fitzpatrick is still at school, returning this year to be deputy head girl at St Cuthbert's College, Auckland.
The Australian teams have made only six fewer changes (12 new to the competition) than the Kiwi franchises. There's no laurel-resting, even for reigning champions the Melbourne Vixens, who have not renewed contracts for Ama Agbeze, Ashlee Howard and Sarah Wall. They will introduce shooter Tegan Caldwell (from the champion Australian Under-21 team) and defender Kara Richards (from ANL champions Victorian Fury), and welcome back Wendy Jones (nee Jacobsen) after a pre-season injury ruled her out of the 2009 team.
The coach appointments have been more stable, with only one change made for 2010, at the Queensland Firebirds, where Roselee Jencke replaces Vicki Wilson.
The 2009 ANZ Championship begins on Saturday 20 March with a cracking first round of five games that could be among the closest of the year. The first chance to assess teams' form is at the Queenstown Pre-Season Tournament, 19-21 February, hosted by Southern Steel.
Read previews of the five New Zealand teams here:
Slideshow Image: ANZ Championship fans in 2009 - never short of enthusiasm! (PHOTO: Michael Bradley)