Editing 2014 Shardball season

{{Infobox AFL season|year=2014|image=2014SBSlogo.png|imagesize=258px|caption=|date=7 March – 24 August 2014|teams=8|premiers=TBA|premcount=|runnersup=|rucount=|minorpremiers=TBA|mpcount=|brownlowmedal=TBA|votes=|colemanmedal=TBA|goals=|matches=88|attendance=TBA|highattendha=TBA|highattendfinals=TBA|update=pre-season|prevseason={{coloured link|white|2013 Shardball season|2013}}|nextseason={{coloured link|white|2015 Shardball season|2015}}|name=2014 Shardball season}}

The '''2014 Shardball season''' was the fourth season of the Australian Shardball League (ASL), the national competition for senior men’s Shardball in Australia. Following Adelaide Forge’s maiden premiership in 2013, all eight clubs entered the year seeking to establish supremacy in an increasingly competitive league. The season featured new broadcasting arrangements, experimental fixturing, and growing crowds, with Hobart Crags and Melbourne Titans emerging as early favourites to challenge the reigning premiers.

== Background ==
After three foundation seasons that established Shardball as a fixture of the national sporting calendar, the ASL entered 2014 with momentum and stability. The league renewed its naming rights agreement with Aurora Energy, while also expanding its digital footprint with a redesigned streaming service integrated into Foxtel and Kayo, giving fans access to live matches and archived content.

The fixture retained several innovations from previous years, including Gather Round in South Australia and Indigenous Round, but also trialled a return of Thursday night matches for selected marquee fixtures. Hobart Crags, buoyed by their breakthrough Grand Final appearance in 2013, launched a “Top Four or Bust” campaign under coach Anthony Preston, while Adelaide Forge sought to prove their premiership was not a one-off.

The Melbourne Titans entered the season determined to reclaim dominance after two seasons without a premiership despite consecutive minor premierships, while Sydney Shardhawks looked to recover from their failed 2013 title defence. Meanwhile, Canberra Sentinels and Darwin Cyclones invested heavily in youth development, positioning 2014 as a transitional year in their rebuilding programs.

== Fixture changes ==
The 2014 fixture introduced a series of adjustments aimed at increasing match accessibility, boosting television audiences, and ensuring competitive balance across the 22-round home-and-away season. The league confirmed that each club would play every other club three times, with an even spread of home and away allocations determined by venue capacity and broadcast demand.

Thursday night matches returned as a semi-regular feature after a one-year trial in 2012, with six fixtures scheduled across the first half of the season. These matches were reserved for high-profile rivalries and showcase events, particularly those hosted in Melbourne and Adelaide. Gather Round was once again staged in South Australia, but for the first time included a double-header at Adelaide Oval, allowing the league to test back-to-back ticketing arrangements.

Sunday afternoon matches were shifted forward to a 2:50 pm start time, following consultation with broadcasters to avoid clashes with evening news bulletins and other live sport. In addition, the ASL confirmed that Hobart Crags and Canberra Sentinels would each host a match in regional venues — Bellerive Oval hosting two Crags fixtures against Victorian opponents, while the Sentinels staged one game at Manuka Oval and another at a new trial venue in Wagga Wagga.

The Indigenous Round was expanded into a full “festival” format, with Darwin’s TIO Stadium hosting a Saturday night feature match and the inclusion of cultural programs running across the Northern Territory throughout the week. Collectively, these fixture changes were designed to balance traditional marquee clashes with opportunities to grow Shardball’s audience in new markets.

== Teams ==
'''b''' = defending champions
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
! rowspan="2" |Club
! rowspan="2" |Coach
! colspan="3" |Leadership group
|-
!Captain(s)
! style="width:20em" |Vice-captain(s)
! style="width:33em" |Other leader(s)
|-
! scope="row" |Sydney Shardhawks
|Daniel Kerrigan
|Blake Foster
|Aaron Kane, Riley Thomas
|Marcus O’Neill, Ethan Ward
|-
! scope="row" |Melbourne Titans
|Andrew Collins
|Nathan Cross
|Dylan Marks, Corey Ellison
|Jack Harrington, Lucas Webb, Trent Miles
|-
! scope="row" |Brisbane Breakers
|Craig Morton
|Liam Drummond
|Connor Hayes, Josh Farrelly
|Tyson Cole, Brandon Harper
|-
! scope="row" |'''Adelaide Forge'''
|Peter Lawton
|Mitchell Grant
|Zachary Doyle
|Patrick Laird, Cameron Bishop
|-
! scope="row" |Perth Ironfangs
|Darren McIntyre
|Owen Marshall
|Jared Collins
|Heath Stanton, Kyle Rivers, Damien Cole
|-
! scope="row" |Hobart Crags
|Nathaniel Brooks
|Samuel Clarke
|Oliver Kent
|Matthew Dunbar, Lachlan Frost
|-
! scope="row" |Darwin Cyclones
|Paul Hennessy
|Jacob Reynolds
|Daniel McCallum
|Kieran Hunt, Sean Parker, Aaron Talbot
|-
! scope="row" |Canberra Sentinels
|Michael Kerr
|Ryan Gallagher
|Matthew O’Connor
|Dean Wallace, Corey Summers, Josh Hammond
|}

== Games ==

== Ladder ==

== Finals ==