Winless Magic left reeling as Casey Kopua return ends in injury
Sunday, 3 May 2026
Retired Silver Ferns legend Casey Kopua suffered a calf injury in her surprise return to the netball court.
The legendary former Ferns captain was a shock addition to the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic team sheet on Sunday, filling in as an interim replacement player for Oceane Maihi, who was having her workload managed.
Kopua, who last played for her beloved Magic in 2019, left the court with a calf injury early in the third quarter and was in obvious discomfort sitting on the team bench.
She did not return to the court as the winless Magic lost their fourth straight game to open the season, beaten 56-39 by the Stars at Auckland’s Pulman Arena on Sunday.
“I think they call it old age. Just when I pushed off I thought someone actually hit the back of my leg, but nobody did, it was just me. My calf has decided to have a blow out, so not ideal, but life still goes on,” Kopua told TVNZ post game.
She was uncertain if she would be able to play again this season.
Kopua, who spent 17 seasons with the Magic, retired from elite netball after the Ferns’ 2019 Netball World Cup triumph, but answered an SOS call to help out Giants Netball in Australia’s Super Netball last year.
Kopua, who turns 41 in June, started the match at goal defence and snaffled an intercept and three deflections before picking up the injury, playing 33 minutes.
Before Kopua left the game, the Magic were able to match it with the Stars, trailing 24-21 at halftime.
“When you sign up to come in as a replacement player at an older age you probably have to think about whether your body can handle it and if you watch how she did it, it wasn’t anything extraordinary,” Mystics and Silver Ferns shooter Maia Wilson said in commentary on TVNZ.
“It was quite basic, but unfortunately I think the age was catching up on her.”
Kopua was not the only retired Fern to take the court with Stars assistant coach Leana de Bruin, suiting up at 48 years of age, getting 34 minutes off the bench.
The Stars pulled away from the struggling Magic, who were without injured starting goal shoot Saviour Tui, in the second half to secure their third win.
Meanwhile, in desperate need of a win, the under-pressure Northern Mystics delivered in Peta Toeava’s milestone match.
The Mystics celebrated the midcourter’s 150th outing for the side in style, overpowering the Mainland Tactix in the second half to triumph 52-43 in Saturday’s grand final rematch in Auckland.
This was a much-needed victory for the Mystics, who were disappointing in the second half of last week’s home loss to the Steel. The pre-season title favourites had also begun the competition with two losses in their opening three games.
In doing so, the Mystics handed the defending champion Tactix their first loss of the season and gained some revenge from last year’s final defeat.
Toeava, who debuted for the Mystics in 2013 while still at McAuley High School in Ōtāhuhu, deserved a memorable performance from her team-mates in her 150th and got just that.
The Tactix sorely missed inspirational captain and wing attack Erikana Pedersen, who suffered a shoulder injury against the Magic last week. In a statement on Friday, the Tactix said assessments were still being completed on their key midcourter.
The Tactix went to halftime with a 25-24 lead, but it was all the Mystics in the third quarter, who seized control of the match. Amorangi Malesala scored the opening goal of the term for the Tactix, but the Mystics then scored eight consecutive goals.
The Mystics outscored the Tactix 14-7 in the quarter with the red-and-blacks turning the ball over seven times in the term. It was a dominant second half from the Mystics, who punished the Tactix mistakes and limited the visitors to 18 goals after halftime, scoring 28 themselves.
In Saturday’s later game, the Steel made it three straight wins after a loss in their season opener, overcoming the Central Pulse 54-47 in Invercargill.
Aliyah Dunn, the form goal shoot in the competition, had another strong outing for the southerners against one of her former sides, converting 41 from 43. Dunn has enjoyed an excellent start to the season, but is unlikely to be on the Silver Ferns’ Commonwealth Games radar with Grace Nweke and Amelia Walmsley the top goal shoot options.
A 14-7 second quarter from the Steel saw them go into the main break holding a 28-20 lead. The Steel pushed their advantage to 12 goals by the end of the third quarter, leaving the Pulse with an uphill battle to claw their way back.
Despite winning the final quarter (14-9), the Pulse left themselves too much work to do late in the game.
ANZ Premiership points after round four
Tactix 9, Stars 9, Steel 9, Mystics 7, Pulse 5, Magic 0.