A pair of aspiring Magic netball players were wearing big smiles and clutching a handful of prized signatures after pulling on the armband as ANZ Future Captains during the Magic's clash with the NSW Swifts.

All eyes were on Olivia Marshall, 9, and Ellee Newman, 10, as they stood side-by-side with Magic defence Leana de Bruin and Swifts captain Kimberlee Green in front thousands of fans at the ASB Arena in Mount Maunganui.

Magic defence Leana de Bruin, Future Captains Ellee Newman, 10, and Olivia Marshall, 9, and Swifts captain Kimberlee Green at the ASB Arena in Mount Maunganui. Photo: Photosport.

Olivia and Ellee won the opportunity to meet the captains and high five each player as they ran on court through the ANZ Future Captains competition.

Oropi Primary School pupil Olivia says getting to meet her favourite players Casey Kopua and Jo Harten was an awesome experience.

'The best part was getting signatures from all the players in the Magic as I can keep them,” she says. 'I felt really special.”

Olivia has been playing in the Harbourside Netball Competition for three seasons.

'I love playing netball,” she adds. 'It's a really fun sport but can be quite challenging. I like playing centre and goal attack.”

Ellee, who attends Te Kuiti Primary School, has been playing since she was seven and hopes to one day play for the Magic team.

'My favourite positions are goal attack, centre and wing attack,” she says. 'Being in the Magic would be really fun but really stressful I think.

'I met Jo Harten and it was cool. She gave me a handshake and said ‘hello' to me. Being a Future Captain was great, but I was quite nervous.”

ANZ head of sponsorship Susan McGregor says it's many youngsters' dream to compete in the elite trans-Tasman tournament and being a Future Captain gives them a taste of what it's like.

'We're giving 62 children from across the country the chance to be a Future Captain at each of the ANZ Championship matches this season,” says Susan.

'It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience to stand out on court with the pros and hopefully it inspires a few players to keep training hard. It could be one of them one day soon.”

The match saw the Swifts beat the Magic 48-43.