When the Adelaide Thunderbirds sunk a goal to send the 2023 Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) grand final into extra time, John Cain Arena erupted — but Mel Taylor didn’t flinch.
Courtside, headset on, and fingers flying across the controls, she knew she had an important job to do.
“Even though the crowd gets energised, and the players energised, and there's people yelling everywhere, you just lock in,” Taylor said. “If you make a mistake, 10,000 people are going to see it, as well as everyone else watching on TV.”
While every netball fan knows an SSN game requires 14 players on court and two umpires, Taylor is part of a team of additional officials who often go unrecognised.
You might have seen them sitting courtside wearing headsets and dutifully taking notes — bench officials are a critical component of an elite netball match, ensuring every point, time stoppage, and rolling substitution is accurately recorded.
Taylor and Maddie Okely are two of Victoria’s bench officials working at the SSN level. Both got their start in the Victorian Netball League (VNL) before progressing through the officiating pathway to earn their Elite accreditation and begin working in the national league.
Each SSN game requires five bench officials: two Champion Data representatives who record all the game statistics; a bench manager; timer; and scorer.
The timer and scorer use specialised equipment (a Tissot Clock for timing, and Sport in the Box software for scoring) to log each moment, which is crosschecked and synced to the venue’s scoreboard. “So there's a pretty thorough process to check every goal that goes through the ring,” said Taylor.
Being a bench official is a dream job for a “stats fanatic” like Okely, offering her a front-row view to the world’s best netball league. “It’s the best seat in the house,” she said.
But officiating isn’t your typical netball viewing experience. Bench officials are constantly tuned into mic’d up umpires, watching for every signal to ensure stoppages, substitutions, and scoring data are logged instantly and correctly. They also trigger the quarter-time sirens, manage the timing of player suspensions, and update venue scoreboards.
Taylor said staying focused and emotionally neutral is the hardest part of the job, especially in high-pressure games like that 2023 grand final.
In those kinds of tense matches, Okely said it’s the support of the bench manager and team that help you stay composed and concentrate on the task at hand. “You're all working together, in sync, and in a calm way. Everyone is on the same page.”
Earlier this year, both Taylor and Okely earned their High Performance Bench Official Accreditation — the highest level in Netball Australia’s officiating framework. The recognition opens the door for international opportunities, including the upcoming 2027 Netball World Cup in Sydney.
“I’m very excited if that’s what this next opportunity brings,” said Okely. “It would be unreal to be part of the World Cup team in 2027.”
Taylor encourages anyone interested in trying bench officiating to contact Netball Victoria or their local VNL club. No playing experience is required — just an eye for detail and a passion for the game.
“Anyone can do it,” Taylor said. “You don't need to be fit enough to run out four quarters as a player or an umpire, but you can still be involved in netball as an official.”
Both Mel and Maddie have been selected as bench officials for this weekend's Suncorp Super Netball grand final at Rod Laver Arena.
Find out more about the ways you can be involved.
