Diamonds star and Australian Netball Players' Association president Jo Weston has broken down in tears while explaining the toll on the Super Netball players in their pay dispute with Netball Australia.
In a press conference on Thursday, Weston began to cry when asked about being threatened with legal action after Super Netball stars collectively boycotted the Netball Australia Awards on Saturday night.
"The letter that came through just before the awards, it is hard to talk about what it means," Weston told media.
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"The Netball Australia awards are one of my favourite events. I'm getting emotional about it."
Pushing through tears, she continued: "It's been really hard. All of us just want to be able to move forward with what we think is fair and reasonable for our playing group. We want to feel like we're valued. We want to feel like we're respected and listened to."
Negotiations have broken down repeatedly over the type of share model that the sport would enter into in partnership with the players
However, Weston is hopeful of a resolution when the players' association meet with Netball Australia on Friday.
"Hopefully tomorrow when we're in the room we'll be able to get something done for our players," she said.
On Wednesday, the players association refused a holdover deal from Netball Australia which included an immediate 11 per cent pay rise and back pay from October 1.
While this offer would have seen the players paid straight away, it would have tabled the hybrid revenue share and profit share model component of the CPA which the players have repeatedly asked for.
ANPA chief executive Kathryn Harby-Williams reiterated the stress felt by the players who have gone nine weeks without being paid after the league's previous collective player agreement expired on September 30.
"We are desperate to get a deal done for these players because that's the emotional toll that you are seeing right there," she said, pointing to a distressed Weston.
"I speak to players and have had for the past nine weeks, and I have had players sobbing. I have had them weeping. Players have slept in their car, players have had to move out of their homes and move across the country back to families," she said.
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