Cynna Kydd (née Neele; born 18 September 1981 in Kyabram, Victoria) is a former Australian professional netball player. Kydd achieved some success in netball and swimming in her early life, and played in the Dairy Farmers State League at the age of 16. She was also selected for the national under-21 team in 1999 and was accepted by the Australian Institute of Sport, before launching her professional career.
Kydd was a goal shooter for the Melbourne Kestrels in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy from 2000 to 2006, serving as club captain for the last two years. An accurate and high-scoring shooter, she was one of the league's top players of that era, winning the competition's Most Valuable Player award for 2004. She was also a frequent member of the Australian national netball team from 2003 to 2005. Her career was hampered by injury and poor form in later years, and she struggled after being dropped from the national side in early 2005 and missing out on a return in time for the 2006 Commonwealth Games after sustaining a serious concussion late in the year.
Kydd made the surprise decision at the beginning of the 2006 season to transfer from the Kestrels, where she had been captain, to the club's more successful rival, the Melbourne Phoenix, but she lasted only one season before walking away from the club to travel overseas. She subsequently signed with New Zealand club Canterbury Flames for the 2007 National Bank Cup season, but withdrew her services before playing a game due to injury. She subsequently moved to England, where she played mixed minor grade netball.
Early life
Kydd was born in the Victorian regional town of Kyabram, and began playing competitive netball at age nine. Though also a talented swimmer, she was forced to make a choice between the two sports, and ultimately chose netball. She played for local and Goulburn Valley representative teams as a teenager and, in 1998 at the age of 16, was selected to play for the dominant Eastside Netball Club in the state Dairy Farmers State League competition, alongside three national league players. Despite a regular three-hour commute and having to juggle sporting commitments with studies at Kyabram Secondary College, she played an integral role in Eastside's premiership that year. She was subsequently named in the state under-21 squad for the annual Australian National Netball Championships and in the Melbourne Kestrels squad for the 1999 season.
Despite never having played a national league game, Kydd was selected in the national under-21 (U-21) team in 1999, which, as a result of reforms made that year, automatically saw her admitted to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). She spent the 1999 season playing for the AIS team in the Victorian state league, before switching to their South Australian counterparts for the 2000 season. Kydd, at 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) tall, established a reputation as an effective shooter, and despite often missing matches as a result of her national U-21 team was a key part of the team.
Commonwealth Bank Trophy debut
Kydd made her debut for the Melbourne Kestrels in April 2000 but, because of her relative inexperience, was asked to play only two games for them over the season. She earned selection in the U-21 national squad to tour Jamaica in May, followed by a successful stint with the team as part of the squad for the Youth World Cup in Wales. At season's end Kydd was named in the state open team for the national championships and, while remaining in the U-21 squad, was also named in the initial national open squad, despite having only played two national league games. However, the national squad was at the time enjoying an unusual glut of shooters, and she was cut amidst fierce competition from six other prominent players, all aiming at just three positions in the final team. Her disappointment was, however, partly offset when she won the Commonwealth Bank Trophy's Best New Talent award, worth A$5,000, in February 2001.