Brown recommits to Pulse for 2016 - September 2015

STAYING PUT: Former WHS student Jodi Brown has signed up for her second season with the Pulse.

Wanganui expat shooter Jodi Brown has recommitted to the Mojo Pulse for the 2016 ANZ Championship as the last piece of the puzzle for new coach Tanya Dearns' playing roster.

It will be the 34-year-old's second season with the capital team after signing up last year under Robyn Broughton, although negotiations for her to come back were still ongoing until late last week, right before the deadline to announce finalised squads.

The contention was over Brown's continuing to commute from Dunedin, where her two children are at school, as Dearns' preference was for the squad to all be based in Wellington during the ANZ Championship campaign.

However, the desire to keep the 57-test veteran and recent World Cup silver medallist won out over the concern about extra travel.

"Re-signing Jodi has always been a priority for me and I'm really looking forward to workingwith her again," said Dearns.

"I am the first to acknowledge Jodi manages the commuting extremely well and our intention is for her to be in Wellington for all the team stuff, returning to Dunedin and her family on the days we don't have team commitments."

The Pulse would have been very light on quality shooters without Brown, with the coach acknowledging her skills and experience will be crucial for success next year.

"Her experience and leadership skills provide us with the stability needed to complement the youth and exuberance of both Ameliaranne [Wells] and Maia [Wilson].

"She has worked really hard over the last couple of seasons to increase her shooting volume and accuracy.

"The amount of work she does outside the circle is often unseen. Jodi is a very clever player, with deft passing skills and ability to see space."

Brown said she had always been committed to re-signing with the team, so the decision to accommodate her living down south had come as a relief.

"The Pulse have not only been extremely co-operative over the last few months, but they have also been very patient while I've been working through the World Cup," she said.

"I've been looking forward to returning to the Pulse. There's a new direction, new coach and a new team.

I'm also really excited about working alongside the young players and hope I can contribute to their development," Brown said.

Wanganui's other expat star and Brown's former Pulse and Silver Ferns teammate Joline Henry (another former WHS student) will not be returning to the franchise in 2016.

Henry, 32, just missed out on the World Cup squad.

Like Brown, she had a travel scenario as she lives in Hamilton, with her son who is now two-and-a-half-years old.