Quick answer: For netball you want a brace that resists the sideways roll on landing without stopping you from pivoting, and that is thin enough to live inside a court shoe you already own. That is the case for an adjustable knit wrap rather than a bulky lace-up cage, which is exactly what the Solehush MotionLock Ankle Support Brace is built to do at $34.95 with Buy 1 Get 1 Free, rated 4.9 by 3,000+ verified buyers.
Netball is the worst sport in the world for ankle injuries
That is not a figure of speech. Victoria University researchers surveyed 578 female athletes across netball, basketball, volleyball and soccer in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom, and netball came out worst. Of the athletes surveyed, 73 per cent had suffered repeated ankle injuries, averaging up to four sprains per ankle each, and netball reported the highest rates of chronic ankle instability of any sport in the study. You can read the summary from Victoria University.
That matters here because netball is not a niche sport in Australia. It is the most popular women's team participation sport in the country, with an estimated 442,500 Australians aged 15 and over playing in 2023-24. Put those two facts together and you get a very large group of people who have rolled the same ankle several times and are heading back out on court anyway.
A broader 2021 systematic review of netball injuries found the ankle to be the most frequently injured site across the studies reviewed, with ankle injuries making up anywhere from 13 to 84 per cent of all injuries depending on the population and how each study defined an injury, and 67 per cent of those ankle injuries being lateral ligament sprains. The range is wide because the studies are not directly comparable, but every one of them points the same way. You can read the full review at PMC.
Why is netball so hard on ankles?
Netball concentrates almost every known ankle risk factor into one sport. The footwork rule means you stop dead rather than decelerating over several steps. The court is small, so players land in traffic. Rebounds and intercepts mean you come down off balance, often onto someone else's foot. And the pivot itself loads the joint sideways while your body keeps rotating.
Sports Medicine Australia's netball fact sheet covers the wider injury picture and the warm-up and landing work that goes with it, which is worth reading alongside anything you strap on.
Finals season is exactly when this bites
Most Australian winter netball competitions run April to September, with semis, prelims and grand finals landing in late August and early September. That is the worst possible time to be nursing an ankle you do not trust, and it is also the time of year when players are least willing to sit out a week.
If you are heading into finals on an ankle you have rolled before, the sensible move is not to strap it tighter on the day. It is to train in whatever support you plan to play in, so the fit and the feel are settled before it counts.
What should a netball ankle brace actually do?
Three things, in this order.
Resist inversion. Lateral ligament sprains happen when the foot rolls inward under you. The support needs to be concentrated over the outer ankle bone, not spread evenly around the joint like a plain sleeve.
Let you pivot. Netball is not a sport where you can afford a locked ankle. You need the joint free to hinge forward and back for driving and landing, with the resistance sitting on the sideways axis only.
Disappear into the shoe. Court shoes are already snug. A brace that forces you up a shoe size changes your fit, and a brace that slides down mid-quarter is worse than no brace at all.
MotionLock is designed against that list. A hexagon grip zone sits over the outer ankle bone where the roll happens, an adjustable lock-wrap strap lets you set your own tension rather than accepting a fixed one, the heel is open so your foot still sits flat in the shoe, and the knit is thin enough to fit in normal footwear. One size adjustable, in Green, Grey, Purple and Pink.
Which type of ankle support suits netball?
| Option | Sideways support | Pivot freedom | Fits a court shoe | Reset between games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rigid lace-up brace | Highest | Most restricted | Often needs a size up | Re-lace each time |
| Stirrup or hinged brace | High | Good front to back | Bulky in low-profile shoes | Refit the straps |
| Adjustable knit wrap (MotionLock) | Targeted at the outer ankle | Full | Yes, thin knit and open heel | Pull on, set the strap |
| Plain compression sleeve | Low, mostly a squeeze | Full | Yes | Pull on |
| Athletic tape | High when fresh | Depends on the taping | Yes | Reapply every session |
We will be straight about this. If you are coming back from a serious injury and a physio has recommended a rigid lace-up brace, take that advice over anything on this page. The rigid category exists for a reason. What we are describing is the everyday option for the much larger group of players who have rolled an ankle before, do not want it to happen again, and want to keep playing the way they normally play.
Brace or tape for netball?
Taping is the default in a lot of netball clubs, and in skilled hands it works. The problems are practical rather than theoretical. Sports medicine sources report athletic tape can lose up to 40 per cent of its support within about 10 minutes of activity, which on a netball court is roughly the first quarter. Research widely reported from the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine has found bracing to be around twice as effective as taping. Tape also has to be reapplied every session, by someone who knows how, and the cost adds up across a season.
A brace is the version of that idea you can manage yourself. You set the strap tension once at the start and it is still doing the same job in the fourth quarter. We go deeper on the trade-off in ankle brace vs taping.
Will a brace slow down your footwork?
A thin knit wrap should not change how you move. It is not immobilising the joint, it is adding resistance to one specific direction of travel. Most players report the opposite effect in practice, which is that they commit harder to landings and changes of direction because the ankle feels held rather than loose.
If you do feel restricted, the tension is usually too high. Our guide on how tight should an ankle brace be covers how to dial it in, and it is worth doing at training rather than discovering it mid-match. If you wear a liner sock under it, do you wear socks with an ankle brace explains why it goes under rather than over.
What a brace will not do
A brace is support, not insurance, and it is not a substitute for the boring work. Landing mechanics, single-leg balance, and calf and peroneal strength are what actually change how your ankle behaves under load, and a brace does none of that for you. If you are rolling ankles repeatedly, start with why your ankle keeps rolling and get assessed rather than just strapping tighter.
MotionLock is a comfort and support product. It is not a medical device and it does not treat an injury. If you have a fresh sprain, or you cannot put weight through the foot, that is a clinician question. AAOS OrthoInfo sets out the signs worth getting looked at.
Getting a pair
MotionLock is $34.95 with Buy 1 Get 1 Free, which is the sensible way to buy for netball since most players who brace one ankle end up wanting the other done too, or want a spare in the kit bag. Free shipping to Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the USA and Canada in 7 to 10 business days, 30-day easy returns, and a free Strong Ankles Guide comes with your order.
Frequently asked questions
Can you wear an ankle brace in a netball match?
Yes. Soft braces and wraps are standard in netball at club and school level, and MotionLock is a thin knit with no rigid plastic or metal, so it sits inside a normal court shoe. If you play in a competition with specific equipment rules, check with your umpire or association first.
Is netball really the worst sport for ankle injuries?
According to Victoria University research comparing netball, basketball, volleyball and soccer across four countries, yes. Of the 578 female athletes surveyed, 73 per cent had suffered repeated ankle injuries and averaged up to four sprains per ankle, and netball showed the highest rates of chronic ankle instability.
Is an ankle brace or taping better for netball?
Both work, but a brace is easier to live with. Tape needs skilled reapplication every session and sports medicine sources report it can lose up to 40 per cent of its support within about 10 minutes of activity. A brace holds its tension for the whole match and you can fit it yourself.
Do I need one on both ankles?
Not necessarily. Most players brace the ankle they have rolled before. That said, MotionLock is Buy 1 Get 1 Free at $34.95, so doing both, or keeping a spare in the kit bag, costs nothing extra.
Will an ankle brace fit inside netball shoes?
MotionLock uses a thin knit with an open heel so your foot still sits flat in the shoe. Most players wear it in their normal court shoe without going up a size, which is often not true of rigid lace-up braces.
General information, not medical advice. If you have a fresh ankle injury, cannot put weight on the foot, or keep rolling the same ankle, see a doctor or physiotherapist rather than self-managing with a support product. Results vary.