Incredible Mag

The Top 5 Netballers In The World – 2013’s Unofficial Rankings

<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">It’s been a busy year in netball and the time has once again come to take stock of the world’s very best players&period; Always a controversial topic admittedly&comma; there are hundreds of people that should by rights be applauded for their accomplishments in 2013&comma; but there will always be those that for one reason or another rise to the top&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Chances are you’ll find a dozen or so other top-five and top-ten rankings that entirely contradict this one&comma; but when factoring in both annual and career performance to date&comma; there’s no denying the talent we’ve selected here&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">So take a look and see for yourself just how many you agree with or could not be more disagreeing of – it’s always good to spark a little bit of heated debate&comma; this article is brought to you in conjunction with Netbusters&excl;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><em><strong>5 &&num;8211&semi; Adelaide Thunderbirds&comma; Natalie Von Bertouch<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; center&semi;"><img class&equals;"size-full wp-image-1689 aligncenter" src&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;incrediblemag&period;com&sol;wp-content&sol;uploads&sol;2014&sol;02&sol;The-Top-5-Netballers-In-The-World-–-2013s-Unofficial-Rankings&period;jpg" alt&equals;"The Top 5 Netballers In The World – 2013’s Unofficial Rankings " width&equals;"351" height&equals;"480" &sol;><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;" align&equals;"center"><span style&equals;"line-height&colon; 1&period;5&semi; text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Most likely the last time she’ll ever appear in such a list – not because she’s anything but a legend&comma; but because she’s recently gone into retirement&excl; Yes&comma; it was a sad day for the Adelaide Thunderbirds when Natalie Von Bertouch made the announcement that she was leaving the professional court once and for all&comma; but she’s taking with her the respect of the entire industry&period; Some have gone so far as to say that over the last two years or so she has been the single best player in the world by far&comma; which when you see her playing in the flesh is difficult to argue with&period; Her style is&sol;was as no-nonsense as it gets – she relies more on the simple basics of gameplay rather than flashy tactics and has proved to be a seriously formidable force&period;<&sol;span><&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><em><strong>4 &&num;8211&semi; Queensland Firebirds&comma; Laura Geitz<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">You might notice something of a theme with this list but rest assured there’s no bias – it’s just a fact that the world’s greatest volleyball players all hail from the same neck of the woods&excl; For those that were still on the fence as to whether or not Geitz really deserves a place in the top rankings this year&comma; check out a replay of the ANZ final for this year and prepare to be blown away&period; It was almost like her incredible determination&comma; passion and stunning skill peaked all at the same time and showcased her at her very finest at the perfect moment&period; Her defence is second to none&comma; her leadership qualities are sublime and she’s also a winning personality for the game&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><em><strong>3 &&num;8211&semi; Central Pulse&comma; Irene van Dyk<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Another name to add to the retirement list now&comma; Irene van Dyk is also said to be out of the game for good&period; Well&comma; that’s unless you factor in her rumoured appearance at the Commonwealth Games next year&comma; but this hasn’t yet been in any way confirmed and may well just be wishful thinking&period; In any case though&comma; she’s hands-down one of the best attackers we’ve ever seen grace the sport anywhere in the world and is the living personification of sportsmanship&period; Have you ever seen her without a smile on her face&quest; Us neither&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><em><strong>2 &&num;8211&semi; Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic&comma; Casey Kopua<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Casey Kopua is the kind of player that proves you can never judge a book by its cover – her abilities go far beyond her stature in every way&period; Said by many to be the best defender on the face of the Earth today&comma; her 2013 has been one of wall-to-wall accomplishments – an athlete of truly legendary calibre&period; Of course&comma; some would argue that she’s not what you’ll call a pillar of joy and mirth while playing on court&comma; but let’s be honest – you can look as despondent as you like if you can still come up with the goods like she does&excl; A firm contender for number-one&comma; but in our books pipped at the post by just a single individual&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<h2 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><em><strong>1 &&num;8211&semi; Northern Mystics&comma; Laura Langman<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;h2>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Some would call it a close run contest at the top&comma; but for others this was about as easy as picking a winner could ever get&period; Laura Langman has been unanimously voted across so many circles as the very best volleyball player in the world right now who never&comma; ever lets you down&period; Her value to the game is simply off the scale and her ability to cover pretty much any position flawlessly is just a credit to her and her team&period; She’s a diamond the sport can be proud of and a worthy winner for 2013&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;

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