Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic absence, to cover the loss of young defender Sulu Tone-Fitzpatrick. Several young players have been signed on with development contracts. The franchise is administered by Waikato/Bay of Plenty Magic Franchise Ltd, formed in 1999 when the Waikato Wildcats and Bay of Plenty Magic merged. The franchise catchment area covers the two netballing regions of Waikato and the Bay of Plenty, and both Netball Waikato and Netball Bay of Plenty have two directors on the club's eight-member board. The regional netball bodies also report to Netball New Zealand, while the franchise reports to Trans Tasman Netball Ltd (TTNL), which oversees the
Bay of Plenty in 1769. Cook noted the abundance of food supplies, in comparison to Poverty Bay further back along the eastern coast of the North Island. Further reports of European contact are scarce prior to the arrival of missionary Samuel Marsden to the Tauranga area in 1820. During the 1820s and 1830s, northern iwi including Ngā Puhi invaded the Bay of Plenty during their campaign throughout the North Island, fighting local Māori tribes in what became known as the Musket Wars. However, the 1830s and 1840s saw increased contact between Bay of Plenty Māori and Europeans through trade, although few Europeans settled