Dame Noeline Taurua will return as Silver Ferns coach, ending a bruising two-month saga that divided the netball community and tested the sport's leadership.
Netball NZ has confirmed earlier RNZ reports that Taurua has reached an agreement with the national body to resume her role at the end of the year.
"Both parties share a deep commitment to athlete and staff wellbeing, and to ensuring that the high-performance culture continues to evolve as necessary," Netball NZ announced.
Silver Ferns saga: Dame Noeline Taurua reinstated as head coach - Watch on TVNZ+
"Together, Netball NZ and Dame Noeline have agreed to implement enhancements to support wellbeing and performance, including strengthening the player voice.
"These build on frameworks developed by the parties during recent discussions, with further input from High Performance Sport New Zealand, and drawing from the coach and athlete welfare systems successfully employed by other leading codes."
A source close to the negotiations told RNZ an agreement was reached late on Friday night, and the parties began working through the wording and timing of the announcement.
Dame Noeline is understood to have agreed to make changes to the high-performance environment, including some personnel changes.
The resolution follows weeks of tense negotiations.
What began as a quietly handled cultural review spiralled into one of the biggest controversies in New Zealand netball history. Tensions erupted into public view last month, when Netball NZ abruptly stood down Dame Noeline and her coaching staff just days out from the Taini Jamison series against South Africa.
The move followed a breakdown in talks over proposed changes to the Silver Ferns programme.
It is understood Taurua was last month offered several pathways to re-instatement during lengthy mediation talks that followed the South African series, but the two parties remained deadlocked.
The impasse meant Netball NZ made the decision to extend Taurua's suspension until the end of the year, sidelining the veteran coach from the Constellation Cup series against Australia and next month's UK tour.
"Netball NZ acknowledges that the suspension of Dame Noeline and her coaching team was a difficult decision," it said. "The subsequent period has been a very challenging time for everyone involved, including the Silver Ferns players and management and their whānau, and for this we apologise.
"Netball NZ has full confidence in Dame Noeline's ongoing leadership of the Silver Ferns, noting there was nothing found during the process that called her integrity into question."
Despite a resolution being reached, it is understood Dame Noeline will not return to the team for the remainder of the international season to limit the disruption in the Ferns camp.
The prolonged standoff has exposed strains, not only in the sport's leadership, but also within the Ferns squad, where players have had to shoulder the uncertainty of a shifting high-performance environment.
The mental toll of the highly public dispute has been evident in the Ferns' performances during the Constellation Cup. Led by interim coaches Yvette McCausland-Durie and Liana Leota, the NZ women have suffered 17-goal defeats to Australia in the two opening matches - both off the back of second-half lapses.
"While there has been public speculation on this matter, Netball NZ has a duty of care to all employees, including our players," it said. "Despite intense interest, we have not and cannot engage with commentary that breaches their right to privacy and does not reflect the full context.
"We thank athletes, coaches, staff and the wider netball community for their patience, and continued commitment to the Silver Ferns."
The Ferns will take the court against Australia on Sunday night in Hamilton for the third test.
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