Category: New Zealand

Australia crowned Netball World Cup champions for the 12th time as Jamaica clinch bronze

Australia reclaimed the Netball World Cup after defeating England 61-45 in the final of the tournament at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Sunday. That saw the Diamonds lifting the trophy, which was presented by South African president Cyril Ramaphosa, for a record-extending 12^th time.

Earlier in the evening in the bronze medal playoff, Jamaica defeated New Zealand for the second time in a matter of days to secure their first podium place since 2007.

ENGLAND 45 – 61 AUSTRALIA

Having lost out to New Zealand by just one goal in the last Netball World Cup final in Liverpool four years ago, Australia ensured there would be no repeat scenario when they defeated England 61-45 in the final in Cape Town on Sunday.

England were playing in their first ever Netball World Cup final after beating defending champions New Zealand in the semifinal while the Australians were contesting their ninth consecutive gold-medal match, having never finished lower than second in the tournament’s 60-year history.

Australia came out firing to take a two-goal lead after the opening exchanges, Steph Wood proving to be the creative force for the Diamonds on attack early on. England coach Jess Thirlby responded immediately, bringing on Fran Williams for Layla Guscoth at goal defence. The move proved an effective one with the Roses managing to close the gap and equalise at 12-12, but throwing away their opportunity to edge in front while the Australians were doing well to hold onto their possession. There was nothing to separate the teams by the first break, however, as they finished the quarter all square on 13-13.

It was the Diamonds who looked more in control after the break, showing patience to work their way around the England defence. While the Roses continued to work hard on turning ball over, they weren’t always capitalising on those opportunities that had been created, thanks to some solid defence from Jo Weston at goal defence and Courtney Bruce at goalkeeper.

That saw the Diamonds edging ahead and taking a four-goal lead into halftime.

When the sides met on Thursday in their final group game in Cape Town, which England won by one goal, the Australians enjoyed a six-goal lead at halftime and would have been wary of letting that slip again.

True to form, the Diamonds had clearly learned from their mistakes, putting their foot down in the third quarter and looking like they were one step ahead of the Roses throughout. Their connections looked smooth and their confidence was rising, making them even more dangerous on attack. Thirlby continued to make multiple changes to the England lineup, and while there were moments of individual brilliance from the Roses, that did little to slow the flow of Australian goals. Kiera Austin scored as the whistle sounded to ensure her side went into the final break 10 goals up.

That was always going to be an unlikely gap to bridge in just 15 minutes for England who, to their credit, continued to fight until the final whistle. But with the Australians within grasp of the title they last won in 2015, the world’s top-ranked side simply continued to do what they do best, steadily building on their advantage to ensure they lifted the trophy for a record 12^th time.

SCORES

Q1: 13-13

Q2: 23-27 (10-14)

Q3: 36-46 (13-19)

Q4: 45-61 (9-15)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Kiera Austin (Australia)

NEW ZEALAND 45 – 52 JAMAICA

The Sunshine Girls gave their nation even more to celebrate on Jamaican Independence Day when they defeated five-time champions New Zealand to claim the bronze medal at the Netball World Cup in Cape Town on Sunday.

Jamaica have played in six World Cup bronze medal matches since 1991 and won three of them but all of those victories have come against England. This time they were up against a Silver Ferns side still reeling from a draw against hosts South Africa and then a semifinal defeat at the hands of England.

The Jamaicans were boosted by the fact that they had claimed their first ever Netball World Cup victory over the Silver Ferns three days earlier and on Sunday they were determined to secure their second.

Both teams came out with plenty to prove and the battle was fierce from the start. The Silver Ferns were dealt a blow when wing attack Gina Crampton was helped off the court after rolling her ankle just two and a half minutes into the match. She was replaced by Whitney Souness and the New Zealanders promptly scored three unanswered goals to edge in front.

It was a gap they held onto for much of the opening period before the Jamaicans finally managed to equalise at 10-10. Two excellent intercepts from the Jamaican defence, first goalkeeper Shamera Sterling and then goal defence Jodi-Ann Ward, gave the Sunshine Girls the opportunity to edge ahead. Despite some risky high balls into goal shooter Jhaniele Fowler in the circle, which had cost them in their semifinal loss to Australia, the Jamaicans went into the break three goals up.

Te Paea Selby-Rickit replaced Maiai Wilson at goal shooter for New Zealand at the start of the second quarter while Adean Thomas came on at centre for Jamaica a few minutes later, replacing Nicole Dixon-Rochester. Later in the period New Zealand captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio was also taken off after conceding several turnovers, with Tiana Metuarau taking her place at goal attack.

It was the defensive units on both sides that ensured there was no real flow achieved for either team. A low-scoring, evenly contested period was the result as Jamaica just held onto their lead heading into the halftime break.

The Jamaicans found their momentum in the third period as New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua rang in several more changes for her side. The Sunshine Girls racked up a run of six unanswered goals to surge ahead and win the championship quarter by three goals.

With a first bronze medal since 2007 within their grasp, the Jamaicans held their nerve to stay out in front in the final quarter to wrap up a 52-45 win and send the defending champions home empty-handed for the first time in Netball World Cup history.

Speaking after the match, a thrilled Jamaican wing attack Khadijah Williams said: “I’m feeling great but I’m not over the performance yesterday [in the semifinal] yet but I’m extremely pleased with today.

“It’s been an extremely difficult eight games in 10 days but I am also extremely grateful and I’m very proud of my teammates.”

New Zealand defender Karin Burger said: “I think it’s amazing to see how far netball has come that there are so many competitive teams out there putting their hands up.

“We put ourselves out there and we have high standards and obviously, this is not good enough. But we are acknowledging the other teams, they have played amazing netball, so big ups to the ones that are going to take that podium. We’ve got work to do and if this is a taste of what the next four years are going to look like, bring it on.”

SCORES

Q1: 11-14

Q2: 21-24 (10-10)

Q3: 32-38 (1-14)

Q4: 45-52 (13-14)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jodi-Ann Ward (Jamaica)

Final placings at the Netball World Cup 2023:

Gold – Australia

Silver – England

Bronze – Jamaica

04. New Zealand

05. Uganda

06. South Africa

07. Malawi

08. Tonga

09. Wales

10. Scotland

11. Fiji

12. Trinidad & Tobago

13. Zimbabwe

14. Barbados

15. Singapore

16. Sri Lanka

Day 9: England down defending champions to reach first ever Netball World Cup final

England down defending champions to reach first ever Netball World Cup final

England held their nerve to pull off a memorable 46-40 victory over defending champions New Zealand at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town on Saturday, so booking their place in the gold-medal match for the first time in the tournament’s 60-year history. In the other playoff match of the morning, Fiji defeated Trinidad and Tobago to secure 11^th place.

ENGLAND 46 – 40 NEW ZEALAND

England and New Zealand met in a Netball World Cup semifinal for a fifth time in Cape Town on Saturday, having also met at the same stage of the competition at the last tournament in Liverpool four years ago.

History favoured the defending champions, with the Silver Ferns having claimed victory in all four of their previous final-four encounters dating back to 1991. But it was the Roses who defied the odds to claim a memorable victory after a fiercely contested encounter, winning 46-40 on a historic day for English netball.

It was a nervous start from both sides, with a few frantic exchanges seeing possession changing hands on several occasions. Plenty of defensive pressure from both sides led to a low-scoring opening period, the momentum swinging both ways before the two sides reached the first break level on 9-9. Things could have looked very different had England not struggled quite as much in the shooting circle, while New Zealand were shooting at 100 per cent at the other end.

England’s impressive defence forced several errors from the Silver Ferns leading to them losing some ground in the second quarter. The Roses edged three goals in front at one stage, but the New Zealanders wouldn’t let them get away, coming back in the final two and a half minutes of the period to deny the Roses while scoring three goals of their own to once again go into the break all square at 20-20. Again, the England shooting average was lower than they would have liked, standing at 73.3 per cent in the second quarter while New Zealand remained at 100 per cent.

The only change to the starting lineups came from England at the start of the third quarter with Jade Clarke, playing in her record-equalling sixth Netball World Cup, coming on at centre for Imogen Allison. Fran Williams came on around 10 minutes later at goal defence, replacing Layla Guscoth, who had done some excellent work in partnership with goalkeeper Geva Mentor in the defensive circle.

A great intercept from Kelly Jury in the circle with three minutes remaining saw New Zealand inching into the lead for the first time in the third quarter. But that lead didn’t last and there was once again nothing between the sides heading into the final break, all square on 32-32.

Whatever England coach Jess Thirlby said to her side ahead of the final period seemed to spark a fire in them as they came out with more confidence for the final 15 minutes. Allison returned to centre at the start of the period while New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua again stuck with her starting seven. With history beckoning, Williams pulled off a game-changing intercept to give England the edge with just over four minutes remaining and Allison delivered another to hand them all the momentum and surge even further in front. The Roses didn’t look back from there, scoring six goals on the trot at the end of the match to secure the 46-40 victory. With that, they become the first team other than New Zealand, Australia or South Africa to reach the gold-medal match in Netball World Cup history.

England coach Jess Thirlby was understandably thrilled with her team’s performance, saying: “I’m really typically very proud, like I’m a little bit overwhelmed with what the team have just been able to do.

“I think to win a game in that way is the most satisfying feeling… our capability on the court from a technical and tactical point of view, I’ve never questioned that or doubted it. I have 100 per cent belief in it. I think the journey we’ve been on is how to manage ourselves through momentum in games against the best teams playing at their best,” she added.

“What a fantastic showcase by both teams. I thought New Zealand were excellent. They did what we kind of expected and maybe we struggled at times to really overcome that but mentally we stayed with it, and I think to end a game of that nature with a run of six just goes to tell you that you just have to stay in the game and it opened up an attack. Defence got what they needed when we needed it most and that’s really satisfying.”

An emotional Silver Ferns captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio said her side were devastated at not having the chance to defend their title.

“It’s really devastating for us. We’re feeling very heartbroken as well, especially knowing that we were in it for the three quarters and I think we really stood up,” she said. “It’s kind of been a bit of the story for us – that fourth quarter but I thought we had our chances as well in that. I guess it’s the way it goes but we have to get up again tomorrow [for the bronze medal match] and find a way. We’ve got a lot of heart left and we’re not done yet – we’ve got another game.”

SCORES

Q1: 9-9

Q2: 20-20 (11-11)

Q3: 32-32 (12-12)

Q4: 46-40 (14-8)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Fran Williams (England)

FIJI 71 – 39 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Fiji took on Trinidad and Tobago in the 11^th place playoff at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town already assured of a better finish than their last World Cup appearance in Liverpool four years ago where they finished 14^th. A spirited performance saw them claiming a convincing 71-39 win to climb two spots on their previous result.

The Fiji Pearls looked by far the hungrier of the teams as they took to the court, finding their rhythm early to pull away from the Calypso Girls, who seemed to be lacking energy. That saw them 5-1 up within the first five minutes of the match.

With their defenders applying plenty of pressure to turn the ball over, Fiji pounced on all their opportunities to extend that lead. Trinidad and Tobago coach Joel Young-Strong brought on captain Shaquanda Greene-Noel at goalkeeper 10 minutes into the first quarter to replace Daystar Swift, but Fiji continued to score at will, racing ahead to a 17-8 lead by the first break.

Unaisi Rauluni was particularly impressive in the Fiji circle, shooting at an average of 91 per cent in the first half as Fiji continued to rack up the goals in the second quarter to reach halftime 34-15 up.

Trinidad and Tobago came back a little stronger in the third quarter while a host of changes for Fiji meant they lost some of their rhythm. That saw the sides separated by just two goals in the quarter score (Fiji winning it 15-13) but the damage that the Pearls had done in the first half meant they took a 21-goal lead into the final period.

Fiji found more fluidity when Maliana Rusivakula rejoined Rauluni in the circle, the duo working well together to extend the Pearls’ lead even further. As she has done throughout the tournament, coach Unaisi Rokoura continued to ring in the changes in the final minutes of the match but her side kept up the pace, wrapping up a 71-37 win and with that, securing 11^th place.

Speaking after the match, an elated Fiji captain, Maria Lutua-Rusivakula, said: “It’s absolutely good. To come out here with a young squad – our aim was to progress from where we left off at the last World Cup and I think everyone really stepped up and put in 100 per cent, so going home, we’re happy that we have progressed from the last time.

“We wanted to finish off on a high. We’ve worked hard and worked strong and wanted to go out with a win so we came out hungry and we said we’re not going to go home without a win, so I think the girls showed that on court today.”

Trinidad and Tobago coach Joel Young-Strong agreed that her players had lacked energy for their final match.

“They really are tired but they should have been doing better than this because we were trained a certain way that when this time at the end comes, we need to step it up. But I think they were also tired mentally,” she said.

“Fiji were hungry. My hats off to Fiji today. We played them in a warm-up and they looked really, really good so we anticipated some great pace, tactics and connections from them, but we failed. It’s alright, it’s all good. We’re going to build from here and come back next time stronger, better and fitter.”

SCORES

Q1: 17-8

Q2: 34-15 (17-7)

Q3: 49-28 (15-13)

Q4: 71-37 (22-9)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Unaisi Rauluni (Fiji)

Day 7: England and Jamaica stun world’s top two as Wales and Scotland win

Day 7: England and Jamaica stun world’s top two as Wales and Scotland win to book ninth-place showdown

England and Jamaica stun world’s top two as Wales and Scotland win to book ninth-place showdown

On a spectacular day of change to the netball world order, England upset 11-time champions Australia and Jamaica stunned defending champions New Zealand at the Netball World Cup in Cape Town. The result meant England finished top of Group F and will most likely meet New Zealand in the semifinal, while Jamaica will play Australia. Despite their loss the Silver Ferns will more than likely still progress to the semifinals, with hosts South Africa faced with the task of beating Uganda by an unrealistic margin in the afternoon match to take their place. In other matches of the morning Wales and Scotland claim victories in their respective games to set up a battle with each other for ninth place.

AUSTRALIA 55-56 ENGLAND

England followed South Africa’s stunning performance against New Zealand on Wednesday with one of their own when they scored their first-ever World Cup victory over 11-time champions Australia at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town. This is only the eighth time in total that the Roses have managed to beat the Diamonds in any competition since the teams’ first match in 1956.

It was England goal defence Fran Williams’ brilliant deflection in the final moments that prevented Australia from securing a draw. The win means England finishes top of Pool F with Australia second. Both teams are through to the semifinals which will be contested on Saturday.

It was England who gained an early advantage with shooters Eleanor Cardwell and Helen Housby capitalising on their opportunities. A late intercept by Funmi Fadoju on goal defence gave England a 15-13 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Superstar Australian defender Courtney Bruce was substituted by Sarah Klau and she immediately made her impact felt, helping Australia regain ground and overtake England for a 32-26 lead at halftime.

In the second half, England started chipping away at the Australian lead.

The third quarter saw changes for both teams, with Williams moving into goal defence for England and Fadoju moving to goalkeeper. For Australia, Jamie-Lee Price replaced Paige Hadley on centre.

With solid play and key turnovers, England won the third quarter 18-13 and headed into the final 15 minutes of the match just one goal behind Australia.

The Roses took the lead early in the final quarter with a goal by Cardwell. Australia stayed strong on defence while England remained calm in the pressure cooker situation.

The match ebbed and flowed in the final minutes, with neither side giving an inch. Ultimately though, Australia lost pivotal moments throughout the match, handing England the upset victory.

England goal attack Helen Housby was named Most Valuable Player. She sank all 22 attempts at goal, was involved in 12 goal assists, responsible for six turnovers in general play and grabbed an intercept to boot.

Australian coach Stacey Marinkovich said her team had their chances and they will have to take a look at how to be more direct.

“In terms of our discipline, I don’t think we were too bad. There were moments when we had to accumulate pressure a little earlier. Our second quarter was very good in terms of how we were able to get the ball to the shot. It was loud out there, no doubt, and we haven’t had that for a bit. I don’t know if the atmosphere unsettled us, but we didn’t stay calm and go through our structures when we needed to.”

When asked about the tag of “underdogs” coming into the World Cup, England coach Jess Thirlby said her side don’t pay much attention to what anyone else thinks.

“From a netball perspective, we know how good we are. From a technical point of view, we are on par with the top teams. The most reassuring thing we are taking away from today is to be able to come back from eight down and see a game out in the closing quarter, this is the most valuable thing we can take away.”

SCORES

Q1: 13-15

Q2: 32-26 (19-11)

Q3: 45-44 (13-18)

Q4: 55-56 (10-12)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Helen Housby (England)

JAMAICA 59 – 48 NEW ZEALAND

Jamaica and defending champions New Zealand went head-to-head in their final Group G encounter to effectively decide who would top the group.

Jamaica famously beat the Silver Ferns in convincing fashion in the semifinal of last year’s Commonwealth Games, eventually going on to claim the silver medal in Birmingham. The Sunshine Girls once again emerged victorious, their impressive 59-48 win a first over New Zealand at a Netball World Cup.

Having had to bounce back from a nail-biting draw with hosts, South Africa, late on Wednesday, New Zealand raced to an early lead before the Jamaicans could put in their first goal. But once they levelled matters at 10-all, they didn’t look back. Both goal shooter Jhaniele Fowler and goal attack Shanice Beckford shot at 100 per cent in the opening quarter as the Jamaicans notched up a five-goal lead by the first break.

Neither team made any changes to their lineup at the start of the second quarter, which proved to be another fiercely fought one. The Silver Ferns looked more impressive on attack, holding onto their possession and outscoring the Sunshine Girls by one goal during the period. But a strong finish from the Jamaicans meant they still held a three-goal lead heading into halftime. There was some concern when the impressive Shamera Sterling, who has been nursing an ankle injury, limped off court during the third quarter and was replaced by Kadie-Ann Dehaney at goalkeeper.

Adean Thomas came on to replace Khadijah Williams at wing attack for the Jamaicans at the start of the third quarter while New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua continued to stick with her starting seven. The good news for Jamaica was that Sterling was fit enough to return to court with six minutes remaining in the period. New Zealand again enjoyed some good passages on play and won the quarter by just one goal but it was not enough to catch the fired-up Jamaicans.

With pressure mounting in the final period, some errors started to creep into the New Zealand game. Coach Taurua finally brought on several substitutes but it did little to stem the flow of Jamaican goals. While Romelda Aiken-George came on for the final few minutes of the match at goal shooter, the imperious Fowler finished with a 100 per cent shooting average, firing in all 49 of her attempts and being named Most Valuable Player. The 11-goal victory for her side saw them handing the defending champions their largest ever defeat at a Netball World Cup.

Speaking after the match, Jamaica’s assistant coach Keyan Murdock said: “It was a very good game, it kept us on our toes the entire match. We expected it to be that though – it’s New Zealand we were playing. They’re number two in the world for a reason and so we expected that kind of a performance from them.

“We were glad that our team were able to ride the waves and pull through at the very end. There are always things to work on but we’re happy for the win,” he added.

Jamaica captain and MVP Fowler said her side’s discipline and focus made all the difference. Asked about her own performance, she added: “To be honest, I felt no pressure throughout the game. I knew what was expected of me and so I just did my best to go out there and deliver.

New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua said: “I thought we still turned over a lot of ball. I thought it was gallant – I think that’s a good word – and they fought right through until the end. There were so many changes that were happening from Jamaica and it was quite physical as well.

“Pity it ended in that way because I thought it was quality from both teams… but there are some positives we’ll be able to take out of it and some lessons that we’ve got to learn – these reoccurring themes that are coming out that we need to be better on.”

Silver Ferns captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio added: “I think we felt in control when we had ball in hand… I think we were definitely in it until we let ourselves down a little bit, but actually for most of it I was very proud of our intent to stick to our gameplan.”

SCORES

Q1: 15-11

Q2: 26-23 (11-12)

Q3: 41-39 (15-16)

Q4: 59-48 (18-9)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jhaniele Fowler (Jamaica)

WALES 70 – 55 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Wales faced off against Trinidad and Tobago in Cape Town on Thursday with a place in the 9^th/10^thplayoff at the Netball World Cup 2023 on the line.

The two sides have met at eight previous World Cups with the Caribbean side having won all of those encounters. But on Thursday it was the Welsh Feathers who enjoyed the early momentum. Trinidad and Tobago looked a little flat from the start and were struggling to hold onto their ball, allowing the Welsh to edge ahead and take a four-goal lead into the first break.

The match came alive in the second quarter with the Calypso Girls finding some of the rhythm and flair that they’ve displayed at the tournament so far while the Welsh stuck to their structures and continued to outpace their opponents. Trinidad and Tobago’s Afeisha Noel provided plenty of entertainment in the shooting circle, mixing it up with several layups and shots from distance. With the teams both scoring 15 goals in the quarter, Wales retained their four-goal lead at halftime.

The Welsh came out firing in the third quarter and Trinidad and Tobago were far less effective on defence. Wales were able to move with speed through the midcourt to feed their shooters, with Georgia Rowe excelling in the circle. The 6 ft 4 goal shooter finished a dominant quarter for Wales with 13 goals from her 13 attempts while she finished the match with a 98 per cent shooting average.

The final quarter was a close one, with only one goal the difference between the sides but ultimately the Welsh stood strong to wrap up a memorable 70-55 victory.

Wales will now play off for ninth place, while the highest Trinidad and Tobago can finish is 11^th. Those positions would mirror their current world rankings with the Welsh currently in ninth and the Calypso Girls in 11^th spot.

Speaking after the match Rowe said her side weren’t focused on the fact that they could claim a first win over the Calypso Girls in Netball World Cup history.

“It feels really good. I don’t think we allowed ourselves to have that pressure of it being the first time. I think we were coming in today after a disappointing loss yesterday and just making sure we were really connected,” she said.

“We stuck to our structures and weren’t focusing so much on who our opposition were, but just on what we were putting out on court, so we’re really pleased. Obviously, the fact that we had never beaten them is an extra celebration for us. I just think it was a complete team effort, which is really good.”

Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Daystar Swift said: “I felt they had better discipline. I felt the Welsh team were making safer passes and that really worked for them, getting the ball to the circle edge

“The energy was down. We tried our best before the game to really lift our spirits and take that spirit on court. Unfortunately, we now play for 11^th and 12^th which is not what we were expecting but we are working hard to seal that 11^th spot and we definitely don’t want to go lower than that.”

SCORES

Q1: 18-14

Q2: 32-28 (14-14)

Q3: 53-39 (21-11)

Q4: 70-55 (17-16)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Phillipa Yarranton (Wales)

FIJI 46 – 62 SCOTLAND

With the Scottish supporters belting out “Flower of Scotland” from the stands, the Thistles secured a 62-46 victory over Fiji in a Pool F match at the Netball World Cup 2023. With the win, Scotland advanced to the 9^th/10^th playoff while Fiji will contest for 11^th/12^th place.

This was the sixth World Cup meeting between the two countries. Thursday’s Scottish victory has levelled matters at three victories each.

Scotland started strongly with a commanding performance in the first 15 minutes. The mid-court, with captain Claire Maxwell at centre playing in her third World Cup, presented quality ball to the shooters who only missed one of their attempts. At the other end, the pressure Scottish defenders Cerys Finn and Emily Nicholl put on the Fiji shooters added to the error count of the Islanders growing.

Starting the second quarter five goals down, the Fiji coaching staff made several changes off the bench as well as positional switches on court, including Ana Nauqe from wing attack to centre and Josephine Nailumu from wing defence to goal defence. It worked, and Fiji won the quarter 18-16. The halftime score was 29-26 in favour of Scotland.

Fiji however couldn’t maintain their strong performance before halftime with Scotland continuing to capitalise on their opponents’ mistakes. The Scottish shooters then made sure of every opportunity presented to them in the circle and closed out the match with a comfortable win.

Scottish captain Claire Maxwell was delighted with the win.

“We’ve been a bit disappointed this competition so far, we’ve been almost there playing some good matches. So to grind out a 60-minute performance is really good. We stayed with our processes for longer, our error rate was fairly low and defensively we won a lot of ball.”

Fiji goal attack Unaisi Rauluni said her side didn’t play as well as they wanted to.

“It hasn’t been that great. We struggled in the mid-court area and this is something that we need to work on.”

SCORES

Q1: 8-13

Q2: 26-29 (18-16)

Q3: 39-45 (13-16)

Q4: 46-62 (7-17)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Niamh McCall (Scotland)

SA draw with NZ in thriller; wins for Jamaica and Sri Lanka

Hosts South Africa and defending world champions New Zealand produced the match of the Netball World Cup 2023 so far, playing out to a thrilling 48-48 draw in Cape Town on Wednesday. In the other matches of the day, Jamaica claimed an emphatic victory over Trinidad and Tobago while Sri Lanka earned their first win of the tournament by defeating Barbados.

SOUTH AFRICA 48-48 NEW ZEALAND

South Africa kept their slim hopes of reaching the Netball World Cup 2023 semi-finals alive with a spirited performance against world champions New Zealand at a packed CTICC in Cape Town.

With the raucous local crowd effectively an extra member of the team, the Proteas came close to beating the Silver Ferns for only the second time in World Cup history. The draw in Pool G now means there is still a chance of progressing to the semi-final. For this to happen, Jamaica would have to beat New Zealand on Thursday while South Africa would have to do the same against Uganda. Goal percentage could prove problematic for the Proteas, however.

Goal attack Nichole Taljaard earned her second Most Valuable Player award of the tournament. It was her shot, with three seconds left in the match, that drew the scores

level. Taljaard had an outstanding match, occupying the space in the goal circle well with her ability to shoot from further away a distinct advantage. She also remained calm under the massive pressure of facing the reigning world champions.

South Africa put in a huge defensive effort in the first half of the match egged on by the deafening shouts of “defence, defence” by the South African spectators in the stands. Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua started ringing in the changes with the game a tightly contested affair. Jane Watson came on in the place of Kelly Jury at goalkeeper in an attempt to stop the ball from moving into the South African goal circle. South African-born Karin Burger was moved from wing attack to goal defence to cover Taljaard. For South Africa, Elmeré van der Berg replaced Venter under the pole.

New Zealand had edged 26-21 ahead by halftime.

Khanyisa Chawane took over from Bongi Msomi at centre at the start of the third quarter, a period of play where South Africa traditionally lost games they should’ve won. In their game against Jamaica, the Proteas scored only three goals in the third quarter, and then outscored the Sunshine Girls 20-15 in the last 15 minutes of the match. This time around however, the Proteas produced an outstanding performance in the third period, winning it 13-12 to only be four goals adrift.

The final 15 minutes of the thrilling match saw the Proteas throw everything at the Silver Ferns. Defenders Phumza Maweni and Karla Pretorius made several brilliant steals on the one end while Van der Berg and Taljaard kept the scoreboard ticking at the other. Nicola Smith then joined the fray.

With four minutes left on the clock, South Africa needed three goals to pull off something special and the atmosphere at the CTICC reached fever pitch. The ball was fed to Taljaard and she made sure to sink what must probably be the most important goal of her career.

Proteas captain Msomi said she told the girls at halftime that New Zealand would make changes, but that they shouldn’t worry about that.

“We believed that we could put up a great performance. It would have been great if it was a win, but we will take the draw. I’ve been with the girls for a long time. We’ve worked really hard to get in such positions and a few times we’ve let ourselves down. There’s so much pride to see them step up and play good netball. For me to be a part of that, it’s fantastic.”

Proteas coach Norma Plummer said Thursday’s match against Uganda will be a different story.

“Uganda has been playing really well at this World Cup. They have a totally different style of play, different from what we had today, and we have to work around that. Hopefully we can challenge them right to the end of the match,” she said.

Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua praised the performance of both teams.

“It always comes down to certain moments that happen. We also had ball in hand and that last 30 seconds, we probably could have drained the clock. When you look at the stats, our stats are actually not that bad, we had 55 per cent of the ball and our shooting percentage was 90 per cent compared to their 76 per cent. We have to take the draw on the chin.”

SCORES:
Q1: 10-11
Q2: 21-26 (11-15)
Q3: 34-38 (13-12)
Q4: 48-48 (14-10)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Nichole Taljaard (South Africa)

JAMAICA 89-26 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Medal hopefuls Jamaica took on Caribbean rivals Trinidad and Tobago for the 11th time at a Netball World Cup in Cape Town on Wednesday, the Sunshine Girls making sure of a comfortable 89-26 victory to continue their course towards a semifinal spot – which was confirmed later in the evening when New Zealand drew with South Africa.

The World Cup head-to-head count between the nations stood at four-all with two draws since their first meeting back in 1963, but this time around it was all Jamaica. Rejuvenated after a day’s break on Tuesday, the Sunshine Girls had no trouble racing to a 14-goal lead by the first break.

Trinidad and Tobago coach Joel Young-Strong urged her side to play their usual safe, short, sharp game in the second quarter but they continued to be outpaced by the Jamaicans, who looked far slicker in all areas.

Adean Thomas was impressive at wing attack while Shanice Beckford was also working hard at goal attack – putting up just one less shot than goal shooter Romelda Aiken-George in the first half. That saw the Sunshine Girls extending their lead to 34 goals by halftime. Their defence also stood strong, as the Calypso Girls’ error count mounted, conceding 29

turnovers in the first half. By the end of the half, they had added just four goals to their total.

There were plenty of changes for Jamaica in the third quarter including Jhaniele Fowler coming on at goal shooter and Rebekah Robinson at goal attack. While the dynamic between the two was different to that between Aiken-George and Beckford, it was no less effective as the Jamaicans continued to put even more distance between themselves and the opposition, finishing the third quarter 50 goals up.

It was all change again in the fourth quarter as coach Connie Francis continued to rotate players ahead of the Jamaicans’ showdown against New Zealand on Thursday. But the Sunshine Girls maintained the intensity to wrap up the emphatic 89-26 win, with centre Nicole Dixon-Rochester named as Most Valuable Player on the day she played her 50th cap for Jamaica.

Speaking after the match, Jamaica assistant coach Keyan Murdock said: “It was about rotating the team… of course we have to be conscious of the fact that we have a tough game tomorrow [against New Zealand]. We wanted to ensure we had saved enough energy and that was part of the rotation.”

Captain Fowler added: “I felt that the rotation of the team was really good, ensuring that we were all rested for tomorrow as well as making sure that we are all getting enough game

time as well that when we get on court to play any other team that we are fit and ready.”

As for the likely gameplan for their all-important clash against the Silver Ferns, Fowler said: “What we can give away is that we are going to stay disciplined and play our game and I reckon once we do that, we should be OK.”

Trinidad and Tobago goal attack Joelisa Cooper remained pragmatic, saying: “It is Jamaica [we were up against] and we have new players and young players who are very inexperienced and this is the biggest tournament they have played in. So we were being realistic.”

SCORES
Q1: 20-6
Q2: 44-10 (24-4)
Q3: 69-19 (25-9)
Q4: 89-26 (20-7)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Nicole Dixon-Rochester (Jamaica)

SRI LANKA 60-56 BARBADOS

Sri Lanka were still in search of their first victory of the Netball World Cup 2023 when they took on Barbados in a Group E clash in Cape Town on Wednesday.

History was not on their side with Barbados having claimed both of their previous head-to- heads at the Netball World Cup – their last meeting a 67-33 victory for the Bajans in Sydney in 2015. But they looked determined to change all that as they came out firing in the first quarter.

Barbados, who have already secured their spot in the 13 th /14 th playoff, were not playing with the same intensity they showed in their defeat of Singapore a day earlier, but managed to stay level, heading into the first break on 15-15.

A run of five unanswered goals at the start of the second quarter meant the Sri Lankans started pulling ahead. That brought about the introduction of Sasha Corbin at wing attack and the move of her sister, Kadeen, who previously won Commonwealth Games gold with England, from goal shooter to goal attack for Barbados. But they remained four goals down at halftime.

Barbados finally seemed to find their rhythm after the break and looked to be a completely different team as they quickly made up the deficit and then surged ahead, winning the third quarter by 22 goals to 12. But the Sri Lankans had a storming final quarter to come back at them to claim a memorable 60-56 win. That is the first time in 20 years that the Sri Lankans have beaten anyone other than Singapore at the Netball World Cup.

Sri Lankan wing attack Gayanjali Amarawansa was overjoyed by her team’s performance and said: “This is a huge win for us, I am very happy for my team because this is our first win.”

SCORES
Q1: 15-15
Q2: 30-26 (15-11)
Q3: 43-48 (13-22)
Q4: 60-56 (17-8)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Dulangi Wannithilake (Sri Lanka)

Match reports Day 4: Wins for New Zealand, Australia, Barbados and Malawi

New Zealand stand strong after Nweke ruled out while Australia and Malawi earn second stage wins.

Monday, 31 July 2023: Rocked by the injury-enforced withdrawal of young goal shooter Grace Nweke, New Zealand rallied to put in an impressive performance against Wales on the first day of second-stage matches at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town. Australia easily overcame Scotland and Malawi beat Fiji while in the battle for the minor places, it was Barbados that got the better of Zimbabwe.

AUSTRALIA 76 – 37 SCOTLAND

Australia came up against Scotland for the 10^th time at a Netball World Cup when the second stage of the preliminaries got under way at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Monday morning.

It was always going to be a tough prospect for the Scots, taking on the 11-time world champions, who had scored 20 or more goals in all but one of their quarters at this tournament so far. It was nevertheless a promising start for the Thistles, bringing some good intensity at the start of the game. But the world’s 10^th-ranked side struggled with consistency and soon fell behind, the Aussies racing away to a 21-9 lead by the first break.

Australian captain Liz Watson came on for Jamie-Lee Price in the second quarter after the centre was cautioned at the end of the first, and Sunday Aryang replaced Jo Weston at goal defence, while Scotland coach Tamsin Greenway made multiple changes to her side – giving as many players as possible the chance to test themselves against the world No. 1 team.

Goal attack Sophie Garbin kept the scoreboard ticking over for the Diamonds, scoring 38 out of Australia’s 43 goals by halftime, at an average of 95 per cent.

Like in their match against England on Sunday, Scotland enjoyed an impressive third quarter, some excellent defence restricting Australia to just 15 goals while scoring 11 of their own.

The Thistles continued that momentum at the start of the fourth period, upping their intensity once again while some sloppy play started creeping in for the Diamonds, who appeared to have taken their foot off the pedal somewhat. But the Diamonds soon got themselves back on track to win the final quarter by nine goals, so wrapping up the 76-37 win.

The Scots could be proud of their performance – becoming the first team at the tournament to restrict the Australians to less than 80 goals in total.

Speaking afterwards, Australian coach Stacey Marinkovich said: “It was one where I thought we started really well. I think our centre pass was going quite smoothly. I think we didn’t necessarily reward the gains we got defensively but it’s getting to that point where you’re continually looking for growth and execution but you’ve also got to celebrate the wins. We’ve gone four from four and we’ve had some big scoring margins, we’ve rotated and used the variety and depth that we’ve got and people are getting out there and performing.

Adding her thoughts on Scotland’s performance, particularly in the third quarter, Marinkovich said: “I think the last 10 minutes of that quarter we were equal scoring and that’s what you’ve got to respect. I think Scotland stepped up their presence in defence and certainly made us work a lot harder… I guess that’s what World Cups are about – it’s about being able to do things over 60 minutes and it’s great to see that every country is having moments where they’re showing what they’re capable of and they’ll continue to evolve and grow as we’re trying to.”

Scotland captain Claire Maxwell was thrilled with her team’s performance, saying: “We really, really enjoyed that game. It’s always a great pleasure playing against the world No. 1 and just being able to see where we’re at against them.

“I think we had passages of absolutely excellent play but there were also times when we could have made better decisions on the court, but overall I’m really pleased.”

SCORES

Q1: 21-9

Q2: 43-17 (22-8)

Q3: 58-28 (15-11)

Q4: 76-37 (18-9)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jamie-Lee Price (Australia)

BARBADOS 62 – 45 ZIMBABWE

In their second meeting at a World Cup, Barbados beat Zimbabwe 62-45 In a Group E match at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town. The roles have been reversed as at the 2019 Netball World Cup in Liverpool, Zimbabwe walked away with bragging rights following a 66-41 victory.

While all the Zimbabwe players have been given court time, Carla Boyce is the only Bajan who hasn’t played in Cape Town. She is also yet to make her international debut.

Initially it seemed Zimbabwe would be able to keep up with their opponents with the scoreline still within reach. There was a handful of much-needed interceptions and deflections that frustrated Barbados.

As the first 15 minutes wound down, the Bajan Gems however settled into things with a run of successive goals by shooter Kadeen Corbin. Barbados also started starving Zimbabwe of crucial possession and this continued in the second quarter. The teams went into the halftime break with Barbados comfortably leading 35-16.

The difference in reaction of the two benches was a clear reflection of how the game was progressing. Whereas the Barbados players were enthusiastically cheering, the Zimbabwean coaching staff were shouting instructions up and down the court in frustration. It was also evident in the changes in the team setup with Zimbabwe switching and moving players around constantly. The first substitution for Barbados was only made in the last quarter when Teresa Howell moved to the bench and Tonisha Rock-Yaw came in at centre.

Zimbabwe had a much better second half as they outscored the Bajan Gems by two goals (29-27). The Gems’ disappointing run of performances ultimately continued in Cape Town, however, considering they finished in eighth place four years ago.

SCORES

Q1: 15-9

Q2: 35-16 (20-7)

Q3: 50-31 (15-15)

Q4: 62-45 (12-14)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Kadeen Corbin (Barbados)

WALES 34 – 83 NEW ZEALAND

The news overshadowing the Silver Ferns team as they took to the court for their Netball World Cup match against Wales on Monday was that goal shooter Grace Nweke will take no further part in the tournament in Cape Town.

Nweke limped off the court with a knee injury in New Zealand’s match against Singapore on Sunday and while early reports suggested the problem was not a serious one, just a day later the official statement came that Nweke had suffered a partial tear in her patella tendon and has been replaced in the squad by travelling reserve Tiana Metuarau.

Maia Wilson started the Wales game as goal shooter and duly delivered, notching up a 100 per cent average with 29 from 29 in the first half as the Silver Ferns powered into a 40-16 lead by halftime.

She extended that flawless record into the third quarter, adding 20 more goals to the rising New Zealand total, deservedly earning her the Most Valuable Player accolade.

Metuarau was given her first taste of World Cup action when she replaced Ameliaranne Ekenasio with just over five minutes remaining in the third quarter and looked at home immediately as the Ferns continued to dominate.

While the fourth quarter was a better one for Wales, with only six goals separating the sides, the defending champions had no trouble in wrapping up the 83-34 win.

Speaking about Nweke’s injury after the match, New Zealand captain Ekenasio said: “We were really devastated when we found out about Grace, lots of emotions and lots of tears but we’ve always been really big on it being the full 15 of us s it’s been really important that everybody feels that they’ve got a place and they know their role as well and they can own it.

“So, for us it’s about supporting [Grace], being around her and being there for her and also supporting Tiana as well. Also we don’t have time, we have to move so that’s really big for us and we’ve got to do it together – that’s the only way we’re going to be able to do it.”

New Zealand coach Noeline Tuarua added: “I don’t believe it is a big blow. If anything it’s probably forced the issue to consolidate faster… what we’ve always known in the team is that we can’t always rely on one person. We have to make sure we have players who can play in multiple positions but also players that can do their own job… sometimes things like this galvanise teams so we’re just putting our heads down and seeing what happens the next day.”

Wales captain Nia Jones said: When we were drawn in this pool, we knew we would possibly face the Ferns and I think where they are and their level of experience, they’re always going o be targeting a podium finish and it’s slightly out of our reach at the minute.

“But we really had to break it down and see whether we could get under their skin really early, or force them into some errors, maybe cause a little frustration. At times we really did that. I think we were patient with the ball and took on their zone and were actually able to break through it and then other times I think we fell into their trap a little bit… so, a little bit of naivety there but we’ve got some inexperience in this group and next time round we’ll be better prepped for it.

SCORES

Q1: 8-19

Q2: 16-40 (8-21)

Q3: 22-65 (6-25)

Q4: 83-34 (12-18)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Maia Wilson (New Zealand)

MALAWI 62 – 48 FIJI

Fuelled by a vocal crowd, Malawi overcame a blistering start by Fiji in their Group F match on Monday to record a 62-48 win at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town.

In their only previous meeting at a World Cup, Malawi also got the better of the Fijians, beating them 68-45 in Christchurch in 1999. More recently (April 2023) the Queens defeated the Pearls 54-47 at the Pacific-Aus Series on the Australian Gold Coast.

A streak of nine unanswered goals midway through the first quarter saw Malawi edge ahead of Fiji with Joyce Mvula shooting with deadly accuracy. At the other end of the court defenders Jane Dambo and Towera Vinkhumbo were solid, denying the Fijian shooters any breathing space. The Queens went into the halftime break with a comfortable 36-23 cushion.

In an attempt to counter the Malawian playmaking and pump some added energy into her squad, Fiji coach Unaisi Rakoura made a handful of changes before the halftime break. Most were in the mid-court where the Pearls had been struggling. Malawi on the other hand only saw changes in the third quarter with Mwai Kumwenda replacing Jane Chimaliro on goal attack. She went on to win the award as Most Valuable Player.

Fiji came out all guns blazing in the penultimate quarter intent on not simply handing Malawi an easy victory. They shared the spoils with the Queens in the third quarter (11-11).

In the final 15 minutes, the Malawian mid-court players demonstrated great ball control and created even more scoring opportunities while at the same time limiting Fiji’s chances to counterattack. Centre Takondwa Lwazi, who was on court for all four quarters despite playing with a heavily strapped right knee, was instrumental in linking Malawi’s attacking and defensive combinations.

While Fiji had more than 50 per cent of the ball in the last quarter, it was Malawi who had the better of possession throughout the match, giving their shooters enough chances to keep the scoreboard ticking over.

Malawi’s Lwazi, who only left the court in the final seven minutes of the match, said her side had started well in the first two quarters but then let themselves down.

“We didn’t do well in the third and fourth quarters, we missed some important passes. For tomorrow’s match [against Australia] we’ll work on the mistakes we made today and we have to keep our focus throughout. We are going to try our best.”

Fiji captain Maria Lutua-Rusivakula lamented her team’s missed opportunities.

“The Malawi Queens came out strong and we knew it was going to be a physical game. We tried to keep the focus and the momentum going. For us it’s always a case of keeping moving and keeping possession of the ball and then bringing it safely to our shooters.”

SCORES

Q1: 20-10

Q2: 36-23 (16-13)

Q3: 47-34 (11-11)

Q4:62-48 (15-14)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Mwai Kumwenda (Malawi)

Match reports, day 3: Wins for Wales, Malawi, NZ, Australia

Wales claimed their first victory of the Netball World Cup 2023 to safely negotiate their way through to the second stage of the preliminaries while there were comfortable wins for Malawi, defending champions New Zealand, and Australia on the third day of matches at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

WALES 68-56 SRI LANKA
With both Wales and Sri Lanka chasing a first victory of the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town, there was plenty to play for when the two sides went head-to-head in their final Group C clash on Sunday.

On the line was a place in the second stage of the preliminaries with only the top three teams in each pool progressing. And it was the Welsh Feathers who got the job done with a 68-56 victory.

While the Sri Lankans stayed within striking distance for much of the opening quarter, some great intercepts from the Welsh ensured they edged ahead, taking a six-goal advantage into the first break.

Midway through the second quarter, the match was halted for close to eight minutes after Sri Lankan wing attack Dulangi Wannithilake received a blow to the stomach from a Welsh player’s knee and became physically ill on the side of the court.

When play resumed, Wales managed to pick up where they left off, Ella Powell-Davies and Christina Shaw doing exceptionally well on defence for their side to open the gap to head into halftime 30-22 up.

The tallest player in the tournament 2.06m Tharjini Sivalingam came on at goal shooter after the break and made all the difference, with the Sri Lankans producing their highest-scoring quarter. Incredibly Wannithilake also returned to action at wing attack.

But a 10-goal gap by the end of the period proved too much to close and with goal shooter Georgia Rowe completing a near-flawless performance in the Wales circle with 49 goals from 50 attempts, the Feathers wrapped up the crucial 68-56 victory.

Powell-Davies was named Most Valuable Player and said: “It’s so, so good – a massive boost of confidence for this squad. We’ve had a tough couple of games and Sri Lanka really brought it to us today. It was super tough out there, but to get the win it’s a massive boost and we’re looking forward to going through to the next group.

Sri Lanka coach Thilaka Jinadasa said: “The girls did well today overcoming these big losses in our last two matches.”

Speaking about Wannithilake’s injury, Jinadasa added: “She will hopefully be OK. She’ll be taken to the doctor to be checked. She’s a very strong character so I’m sure she will be OK.

“She is a very fast wing attack for us in our starting seven so I have more confidence with her and I knew she was a strong character and could come back and she proved it again today.”

SCORES:
Q1: 17-11
Q2: 30-22 (13-11)
Q3: 50-40 (20-18)
Q4: 68-56 (18-16)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Ella Powell-Davies (Wales)

AUSTRALIA 101-32 FIJI

With 18 places separating them in the latest world rankings, a comprehensive victory for Australia (1) over Fiji (19) was all but guaranteed. The world’s top-ranked team is yet to lose a quarter at the Netball World Cup 2023. This was the second 100-goal score of the World Cup, Australia’s third in all World Cups and the 15 th overall.

It was the Diamonds’ fifth World Cup victory over the Pearls. Outside of the tournament, they also have had the better of their opponents in three other international matches.

Fiji got proceedings underway with Maliana Rusivakula landing the first shot. It didn’t take long for Cara Koenen to return the favour at the other of the court for Australia.

Fiji, fresh off their upset win over Zimbabwe on Saturday, managed to hang on for the first five minutes of the game. Australia however found their rhythm and started building up a healthy lead. The ease with which they were moving led to attractive attacking play for which their opponents had no answer.

Fiji head coach Unaisi Rokoura, who played in the 1999 and 2003 World Cups, brought on Lydia Panapasa as goal shooter with Rusivakula moving to goal attack for the second quarter. Josephine Nailumu (goal defence) and Ana Moi (wing defence) also took to court in an effort to stem the relentless Aussie attack. The Australian team remained unchanged.

Even though the possession was evenly distributed in the first half, with a superior goal shooting percentage, Australia had a firm grip on the game. They went into the break 46-18 in the lead.

When the third quarter started, it was a new-look Australian team who assumed position with Ash Brazill the only player yet to make an appearance in the game. Goal shooter Sophie Garbin fired off three shots in quick succession, and another five soon after, to take the wind out of Fiji’s sails.

Australia racked up 26 points in the third quarter and followed it up with 29 in the final 15 minutes of the match, their highest over three days of play.

Goalkeeper Courtney Bruce earned her second award as Most Valuable Player for another stellar performance on defence. She got eight intercepts and caused several deflections to turn the ball back toward her team’s goal circle.

Commenting on the rest of the tournament and how they want to progress, Australian coach Stacey Marinkovich said her team have their eyes set on the other teams.

“As we’ve gone on along the journey, the focus has been on how we get our game going in terms of performance and style, compared to the other teams,” she said.

“So certainly we’ll talk about what we see and what they bring to the table. The draw is what it is. That is one of the challenges of a world cup, you’ve got to bring your game on the day and learn in the moment and adapt.”

Despite the heavy loss, Fiji captain Maria Lutua-Rusivakula said their main goal was to give all the players some time on court.

“In that aspect we did what we wanted to do, even though the result doesn’t really show it. We are progressing all the time and we want to go forward by making the little things count. For now, we are taking it one day at a time,” she said.

SCORES
Q1: 23-9
Q2: 48-18 (23-9)
Q3: 72-27 (26-9)
Q4: 101-32 (29-5)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Courtney Bruce (Australia)

NEW ZEALAND 80-19 SINGAPORE

Defending champions New Zealand closed out their Group D matches with a comprehensive 80-19 victory over the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, Singapore.

Having beaten the same opposition by 68 goals at the last World Cup in Liverpool four years ago, few would have expected anything other than another win for the Silver Ferns when the two sides faced off again on Sunday.

While the Singapore side are speedy and produced a promising start, they were outgunned in all departments, scoring seven goals in the first quarter and just two in the second as New Zealand took firm control.

The Silver Ferns shooters had no mercy on Singapore goal keeper Jamie Lim on her 23rd birthday, racing to a 32-goal lead by halftime.

Once again the Singaporeans’ inaccurate goal shooting cost them with neither shooter averaging over the 55 per cent mark.

While New Zealand had little trouble in sailing to the 80-19 victory, of some concern will be the condition of goal shooter Grace Nweke who appeared to limp off the court in the third quarter and was seen icing her knee on the sidelines.

Despite the comfortable victory, New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua felt there was plenty of room for improvement.

“I’m not actually entirely happy, I thought we were able to get a lot of ball and I think our attention to detail in some respects wasn’t on point,” she said afterwards.

“I feel today we went a bit backwards, especially when we had ball in hand. The quality wasn’t as good as expected.”

Asked about Nweke’s knee, Taurua added: “At the moment the call from the physio is that it’s not too bad but just precaution so I’m happy that we took her off so we can ascertain clearly why there’s the issue, but it’s OK.”

Singapore captain Kai Wei Toh said: “It was really an honour to play against them and I think it was a great experience. We don’t always have the chance to play them so the team enjoyed it.

“I’m very proud of my girls. They put up a strong fight and a strong start, but we should keep it consistent through the four quarters. I think we tried to play a short game, which we did. There were a few successful passes down the court also and I think our defenders did really well. They went for all the balls and really tried very hard.”

SCORES
Q1: 17-7
Q2: 41-9 (24-2)
Q3: 61-14 (20-5)
Q4: 80-19 (19-5)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jane Watson (New Zealand)

MALAWI 84-48 BARBADOS

With singing and dancing Malawi fans in the stands, the Queens scored their second victory of the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town when they beat Barbados 84-48 on Sunday.

The match marked Malawi’s 50th appearance in the World Cup since their debut in 1995. It has been a challenging tournament for Barbados as they suffered their third consecutive loss.

Right from the opening whistle, Malawi took control of the game, showcasing strategic play that left Barbados struggling to keep up. The Queens' skilful passing and rock-solid defence made it difficult for the Bajan Gems to launch any effective counterattacks.

At the start of the second quarter, with Thandie Galetta replacing Jane Chimaliro on wing attack, the African team extended their lead even further. The next 15 minutes saw Barbados facing relentless pressure, with Malawi’s defenders making incredible interceptions and thwarting their opponents' progress. By halftime, Malawi held a commanding 43-22 lead.

The Bajan Gems made a determined effort at the beginning of the second half, with Kadeen Corbin scoring the first goal and expressing their intent to narrow the gap. However, Malaw’s experienced defenders, Towera Vinkhumbo and Jane Dambo, stood firm and they turned Barbados’ possession into scoring opportunities of their own.

Despite their resilience, Barbados couldn’t break through. In the third quarter, Malawi surged ahead with a dominant centre-court attack that left Barbados searching for answers. As the clock ticked down, Malawi maintained their lead, entering the final stages of the match with an impressive 29-goal advantage.

In the last 15 minutes, the Queens continued their dominance, controlling the pace and leaving no room for Barbados to stage a comeback.

Ultimately, Malawi’s tactical gameplay and strategic positioning were the key factors. Their seamless shooting circle rotations ensured a steady stream of scoring opportunities while suffocating defence denied their opponents quality ball possession.

Beaten by England on day 2, Malawi coach Samuel Kanyenda said his side had sat down with the whole team to properly prepare for Sunday’s encounter.

“After today’s win there is definitely less stress after the negative feedback from yesterday.

I’m proud of the girls for putting on a good performance and creating this win. Now we are looking forward to the rest of the games.”

Barbados vice-captain Tonisha Rock-Yaw said it was a tough day at the office.

“There were some things that were good, but we needed to capitalise and focus a lot more. We needed to try and limit the mistakes and turnovers, there were too many today. For the rest of the tournament, we are taking it day by day and just making sure we stay in it.”

SCORES:
Q1: 20-10
Q2: 43-22 (23-12)
Q3: 64-35 (21-13)
Q4: 84-48 (20-13)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Takondwa Lwazi (Malawi)

Match reports, day 2: Wins for Fiji, NZ, Australia, Jamaica

Fiji pulled off an upset victory in their must-win match against Zimbabwe while three of the tournament favourites, Australia, New Zealand and Jamaica, all recorded victories on the second day of action at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town – albeit not without some tough competition from their gutsy opponents.

ZIMBABWE 48-52 FIJI

Both Zimbabwe and Fiji were hungry for their first wins of the tournament after suffering opening day losses at the hands of Australia and Tonga respectively.

Playing against each other for the first time at a Netball World Cup, it was a tightly contested opening quarter. A run of five unanswered goals saw Zimbabwe pulling ahead at one point but the Fiji Pearls came back at them, effectively making use of the soon-to-be- outlawed short pass to eventually level matters at 11-11. By the first break, Zimbabwe had just edged ahead by two goals.

The second quarter was once again a neck-and-neck affair, Fiji levelling matters five minutes in and then taking a one-goal lead into the halftime break.

Fiji notched up another impressive scoring run towards the end of the third quarter to surge nine goals ahead at one point and didn’t look back from there. The Pearls opened their gap to 10 goals at one point, and while the Zimbabweans did rally in the final quarter, winning it 13-9, it was not enough to avoid the upset loss.

Speaking after the match, Fiji coach Unaisi Rokoura said: “We knew coming into today’s game it was do-or-die for us and each sub-unit in the team had specific goals and targets that they had to work on in different areas in terms of defensively, marking one on one and identifying the key player which is their goal attack and we shut her down.

“We knew Zimbabwe was going to come with a physical game and we had to be smarter and just play our own Fijian style of play which is keeping it short and simple and that’s what we did.”

After finishing with a 93 percent shooting average, Fijian goal attack Unaisi Raulani was named Most Valuable Player and said: “I feel very excited because this was a do-or-die game. We had to win this one to go to the next level.”

Asked what made the difference for her side today, Rokoura reckoned: “I think it was just teamwork and communication on court, and also being consistent in everything we did on court.”

An understandably disappointed Zimbabwe captain Felisitus Kwangwa said: “I can say honestly everyone is very sad, including me. We just had a terrible start [to the tournament as a team.

“We just couldn’t maximise on our opportunities that we got as a team and that’s why we ended up here where we are right now.”

Assistant coach Wisdom Shinya added: “We still have a long way to go, we still have our jobs to do ahead of tomorrow’s game against Tonga. We just need to come out from the two losses and step up and do what we should have done in the last two games.”

SCORES
Q1: 14-12
Q2: 25-26 (11-14)
Q3: 35-43 (10-17)
Q4: 48-52 (13-9)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Unaisi Raulani (Fiji)

NEW ZEALAND 54-44 UGANDA

World champions New Zealand survived a scare from Uganda for a 54-44 victory to record their second win at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town. The Silver Ferns have now won all four of their World Cup encounters against the She Cranes.

New Zealand were pushed to their limit in the first two quarters by their African opponents.

Centre Margret Baagala worked hard in mid-court to move the ball through to the Ugandan goal circle, providing enough good scoring opportunities for goal shooter Mary Cholhok. The Silver Ferns however were not to be outdone, with Grace Nweke standing tall in the circle on the other end of the court, making sure she landed her shots.

New Zealand went into halftime with a four-point lead, despite only having a third of the possession. It was their superior goal shooting, 92.3 per cent compared to Uganda’s 83.3 percent, that gave them the edge.

In the third quarter, Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua brought on the experience of Jane Watson, Gina Crampton and Te Paea Selby-Rickit to prevent the first upset of the World Cup. Watson and South African-born Karin Burger proved a lethal combination on defence, starving the She Cranes of crucial ball in their attempt to close the growing gap on the scoreboard.

Even though it was goal-for-goal scoring in the last five minutes of the match, the world champions outmuscled the She Cranes for a vital victory. Uganda will rue the chances they missed and not remaining calm under pressure to get the better of their more fancied opponents.

Baagala, who was the most valuable player in Friday’s victory over Singapore, played all four quarters for Uganda. She was once again a standout player for her.

Taurua credited her side’s strong defensive effort as an important part of the Silver Ferns’ victory.

“Our systems are set and we are fine-tuning what to do against certain opposition. I’m happy with how things are starting to settle and the progress we are making. That’s something we’ve discussed, that all 12 need to be ready in the combinations so that we can keep building and pose something different to the opposition.”

Despite the loss, Ugandan coach Fred Mugerwa said he believed his 15-player squad, of which 13 players are making their World Cup debuts, will be on top of the world at some point.

“As a country we have talents. The only problem is the lack of exposure. Apart from the few warm-up matches we had here in Cape Town, our only preparation back home was against men’s teams which were quite physical. Today we played our hearts out and we really wanted that win. Next time we shall do it.”

SCORES
Q1: 13-11
Q2: 25-21 (12-10)
Q3: 38-22 (13-11)
Q4: 54-44 (16-12)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Phoenix Karaka (New Zealand)

AUSTRALIA 84-38 TONGA

Boosted by their hard-fought victory over Fiji on the opening day of the tournament, the ever-improving Tonga team came out firing against 11-time Netball World Cup champions Australia in their Group A clash in Cape Town on Saturday.

The Tongans used their physicality to exert a good deal of pressure on the Diamonds, also matching their speed to ensure it was a tight first 15 minutes.

Taking on a team playing in just their second Netball World Cup and ranked six places below them in the world, the Australians would most probably have expected to be further ahead than 15-13 at the first break, but it was an impressive opening period for the Tongan Tala.

Aussie coach Stacey Marinkovich stuck with her starting seven in the second quarter and a 10-goal blitz at the start of the period saw the Diamonds pulling well ahead as normal order was restored.

Goal attack Steph Wood came on in the third quarter, so earning a 50 th cap for the Australians as Paige Hadley (WA), Jo Weston (GD), Sophie Garbin (GS) and Sunday Aryang (WD) also came off the bench.

As the game progressed, the Tongans seemed to run out of steam and their early intensity dissipated. They faced a 35-goal deficit by the final break and the Australians continued to dominate to wrap up an emphatic 84-38 win.

Jamie-Lee Price was named Most Valuable Player. Speaking afterwards about the number of turnovers in the first quarter of the match, she said: “Obviously it’s something we need to look at. We adjusted slowly in the first quarter, so I think it was just sticking to our gameplan – that’s all we needed to do, really and just adjust to what they were putting out there.”

Commenting on earning her 50 th cap for her country, Wood added: “It’s really special when you get to pull on the Australian dress, just to do it once is a goosebump moment but to think I’ve been able to play 50 games is something really special and something I’m really proud of.”

Tongan captain Hulita Veve said: “I think we came out firing. I think we had the energy and we came out to play hard. We just needed to work on our consistency in the second quarter and then we lost momentum, but we’ll go back and work on that one.”

SCORES
Q1: 15-13
Q2: 39-19 (24-6)
Q3: 63-28 (24-9)
Q4: 84-38 (22-10)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jamie-Lee Price

JAMAICA 75-40 WALES

Jamaica scored yet another big victory at the Netball World Cup 2023 when they beat Wales 75-40 in Cape Town. This after crossing the 100-mark against Sri Lanka on Friday. Their 105 was the highest score on day 1 while the winning margin (80) was the largest.

There are five positions between Jamaica (4) and Wales (9) on the latest world rankings and it clearly showed as the Sunshine Girls dominated all four quarters of the match. Jamaica’s combination of sharp attacking play and solid defence proved too formidable for their opponents.

The victory showcased Jamaica’s skill, teamwork and strategic execution. Shooters Romelda Aiken-George, Rebekah Robinson and captain Jhaniele Fowler displayed remarkable accuracy, converting more than 90 per cent of their chances. Additionally, defenders Shamera Stirling and Kadie-Ann Dehaney created several turnovers and disrupted the Welsh attacking flow effectively.

Fowler credited their success so far to the strength of the 12-player squad.

“Everyone is going out on court and doing their job and that’s what we need to for them to do, I’m very pleased with that,” she said.

“For tomorrow, I know South Africa is going to be coming hard at us. We just have to stick to our ground and play to the game plan.”

Welsh goalkeeper Ella Powell-Davies said their aim was to disrupt the space of the Jamaicans as much as they could.

“They are world-class players and we wanted to put as much pressure on the feed as we could in the circle. And when we got the disruption it was key that we took possession of that ball.

“Tomorrow is Sri Lanka and it is a game that we want to go out there and meet all our performance goals. We want to have a full 60-minute performance and hopefully we can achieve that tomorrow.”

SCORES
Q1: 23-11
Q2: 44-23 (21-12)
Q3: 58-29 (14-6)
Q4: 75-40 (17-11)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Shamera Sterling (Jamaica)

Results, match reports from opening day’s action

There were wins for hosts South Africa, Jamaica, England and Malawi on Friday evening as the Netball World Cup 2023 gathered momentum at Cape Town’s International Convention Centre.

The SPAR Proteas (South Africa) saw off Wales 61-50, while Jamaica were too strong for Sri Lanka, winning 105-25. England opened with a 90-29 win over Barbados ad Malawi beat Scotland 55-49.

Other results on the opening day were:

Australia 86-30 Zimbabwe
Uganda 79-37 Singapore
New Zealand 76-27 Trinidad & Tobago
Tonga 56-51 Fiji

For all the tournament results, click on the below.

https://nwc2023.org.za/calendar/events-calendar/

Here are the morning sessions’ match reports.

NEW ZEALAND 76-27 TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

New Zealand’s Silver Ferns began their Netball World Cup title defence with a dominant display over Trinidad and Tobago at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in South Africa on Friday, claiming a 76-27 victory.

The 2019 Netball World Cup champions raced into a nine-goal lead before Joelisa Cooper could slot in Trinidad and Tobago’s first goal of the tournament. With Grace Nweke notching up a flawless 100 per cent shooting record at the other end of the court in the first quarter, the Silver Ferns were 23-2 up by the first break.

They continued that momentum into the second quarter, Maia Wilson coming on for Nweke and continuing the 100 per cent scoring record. But Trinidad and Tobago managed to find their shooters in the circle with more regularity – wing attack Shantel Seemungal and later centre Alena Brooks working hard in midcourt – scoring nine goals of their own to take the score to 43-11 at half time.

It was an even better third quarter from the Caribbean nation as they began by matching New Zealand goal for goal for the first 10 minutes and enjoyed 57 per cent of the possession. They once again scored nine goals but restricted the Silver Ferns to just 15 as New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua gave each of her players some court time. Trinidad and Tobago continued their positive performance in the final period, but ultimately the defending champions wrapped up a resounding victory.

New Zealand’s South African-born defender Karin Burger was named Most Valuable Player “I was happy with the start. I thought we were quite dominant,” said Taurua afterwards. “There are some elements we’ve been working on and I could see that out on court. I thought that as the game progressed we sort of pulled ourselves apart or the opposition did and we became reactive but it’s a good start for us and we know the areas we can improve on.”

New Zealand captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio added: “I think we did start well but we have to make sure that we continue to rise above the physicality when it comes so it was a good challenge for us…

“Obviously we had multiple combos out there but we’ve always talked around the fact that no matter who is on we have to be able to do our job so it’s just getting that consistency across the quarters but good for us to know now where we can grow.”

Trinidad and Tobago coach Joel "Twiggy" Young-Strong was pleased with her side’s performance, particularly in the second half.

“New Zealand is New Zealand – they were the World Cup winners so it was tough. We took a little too long to settle in but when we settled in we did some good things, we did some great things and I am very pleased with the goal that we set – to lift our goals against New Zealand and we did that so we celebrate some small wins today.

SCORES:
Q1: 23-2
Q2: 43-11 (20-9)
Q3: 58-20 (15-9)
Q4: 76-27 (18-7)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Karin Burger (New Zealand)

TONGA 56–51 FIJI

A spirited Tonga, in only their second outing at the sport’s showpiece, beat Fiji 56-51 in a Group A encounter on day 1 of the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town. It was the first time these two island nations have met at the World Cup with Fiji participating for the 10th time.

Tonga took to the court wearing black armbands after the recent death of Mo’onia Gerrard’s mother. The 42-year-old defender came out of retirement to represent her second country at a World Cup, previously winning the gold medal with Australia at the 2007 and 2011 tournaments. She made her international debut against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2004.

It was a tentative start by both teams. Fiji decided on an aerial game to counter the more physical play of Tonga. It mattered on the scoreboard, and they ended the first 15 minutes with a five-goal lead.

At the start of the second quarter, Tonga managed to grab a few goals and scored the equaliser after five minutes. Despite outscoring Fiji, their opponents went into the halftime break with a two-point lead.

When shooter Cathrine Tuivaiti came on court for Tonga in the third quarter, it was for the representation of her third country, having previously played for Samoa and New Zealand.

The 2023 World Cup is her second one, after playing for Samoa at the 2007 tournament in Auckland.

With the third quarter winding down, Tonga’s superior position on the world rankings, seventh compared to Fiji’s 17th, enabled them to get a hold of the game. Although Fiji’s goal circle was operating well, silly mistakes were starting to creep in, costing them dearly.

The last 15 minutes of the match saw strong attacking play from Tonga, putting their opponents under constant pressure across the court. Accurate shooting by Tuivaiti and Uneeq Palavi ensured the win.

Tonga vice-captain Kelea Iongi was delighted with her team’s first victory at the 2023 World Cup. “It was just important to stay one on one and grind it out on defence and attack. It was just a case of staying calm, getting the tips and the intercepts. It was a great team effort,” she said.

Tonga centre Hulita Veve was named Most Valuable Player. She put in a great all-round performance, moving the ball through mid-court and getting several intercepts at crucial moments during the match.

SCORES:

Q1: 16-11
Q2: 28-26 (15-12)
Q3: 40-36 (14-8)
Q4: 56-51 (16-15)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Hulita Veve (Tonga)

AUSTRALIA 86-30 ZIMBABWE

World number one Australia completely outplayed Zimbabwe in their first match at the Netball World Cup 2023 in Cape Town, beating their African counterparts 86-30. This was just the second World Cup meeting between the two countries. Australia won the only other encounter 73-37 four years ago in Liverpool.

Both teams remained the same for the first half of the match, with coaches Stacey Marinkovich and Ropafadzo Mutsauki appearing to take a “wait and see” approach. In the third quarter though, Marinkovich rung the changes, bringing on the remaining reserves and making several positional switches, including Ash Brazill moving from wing defence to centre and Jo Weston moving from centre to goal defence for Australia.

For Zimbabwe, captain Felisitus Kwangwa switched from goal defence to wing defence, Joice Takaidza from centre to goal defence and Sharleen Tanaka Makusha from wing defence to centre.

With Zimbabwe claiming 51 per cent of the possession during the first two quarters, the latter stages of the match saw the 2022 Commonwealth Games champions completely stamping their authority on proceedings. The Aussies claimed 15 intercepts, considerably cutting down the passing options of Zimbabwe.

Australian captain Liz Watson brushed off having to step from the court to be re-strapped for a light scratch, saying it was good to get the pressure of the first game out of the way despite being the top-ranked team in the world.

“There are some really strong countries here and international netball is getting tighter all the time. We’ve had some nice success over the past 18 months, this was a great start and now we can build from here and go all the way. We just have to embrace being number one and be proud of that.”

It was a less-than-impressed Zim coach Mutsauki who addressed the media after the match.

“We lacked character today, especially in the second half. We gave Australia too much respect. It is now back to the drawing board before tomorrow.”

Courtney Bruce was named Most Valuable Player. Even though she only came on in the third quarter for Australia, coach Marinkovich used her versatility to great advantage. Bruce started at goalkeeper and then moved to wing defence, centre and goal defence.

SCORES:
Q1: 20-11
Q2: 41-18 (21-7)
Q3: 62-24 (21-6)
Q4: 86-30 (24-6)

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Courtney Bruce (Australia)

UGANDA 79-37 SINGAPORE

A first Netball World Cup clash between Uganda and Singapore saw the African nation dominating from start to finish and walking away with a 79-37 victory.

The She Cranes pulled away in the first quarter, enjoying 60 per cent of the possession in the period and surging ahead to a 22-9 lead.

It was more of the same in the second quarter as the Ugandans proved quicker and slicker on all fronts with Haniisha Muhameed and Shadiah Nassanga doing the business in the shooting circle.

The Ugandans stuck with their starting seven throughout the first half, coach Fred Mugerwa only making changes at half time. He brought 6 foot 6 Mary Cholhok on as goal shooter, with captain Irene Eyaru in as goal attack among several other changes.

Cholhok is one of just two players in the Ugandan squad with Netball World Cup experience, having played at the previous tournament in 2019. She played just one quarter on Friday, however, as Mugerwa continued to roll in the changes and give all his players valuable court time.

Ultimately it was a comfortable victory for the east Africans, much to the delight of their vocal supporters in the crowd, although coach Mugerwa was convinced his side should have scored more goals.

“I was happy but not a hundred per cent,” he said. “We should have scored more than the goals we scored but I think there are some errors that we are making as a team, but we will work on that.

“Some passes were not good so we need to work on that, some of the movements as well, but the moment we work those ones out I think everything will be fine.”

Singapore captain Kai Wei Toh said the match provided a valuable learning experience for her side.

“It was a very big first game. We are a very young team so this game allowed them to experience different body builds and physicality – something that we can use to prepare for the next few games,” she said.

“We are fit enough to go for it – we just have to go for it. We didn’t expect it to be so tough but I think it’s a good thing that the team experienced it once and we know what to expect for the next one.”

“I think we can utilise our speed a bit more. Today we were a bit hesitant with our passes and runs because of their long arms and hands so if we are able to do that, we’ll be able to play a better game next time.”

SCORES:
Q1: 22-9
Q2: 42-18 (20-9)
Q3: 62-29 (20-11)
Q4: 79-37 (17-8)

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Margret Baagala (Uganda)

For all updated results visit https://nwc2023.org.za/calendar/events-calendar/

Holders NZ in Cape Town ahead of NWC2023

New Zealand, who won the 2019 Netball World Cup in Liverpool by edging arch-rivals Australia in the final, have arrived in host city Cape Town ahead of the 2023 edition.

The Silver Ferns are in Pool D where they come up against Uganda, Trinidad & Tobago and Singapore, ahead of the knockout stages.

Champions NZ taking nothing for granted

They may be heading to Cape Town for the Netball World Cup 2023 as defending champions, but New Zealand coach Noeline Taurua reckons the trophy currently belongs to every team.

“We don’t believe that we have ownership of that cup,” said Taurua. “The cup now belongs to everybody so every game is going to be tough. That mentality to win every game is paramount so it’s not a guarantee at all.”

New Zealand claimed the trophy for a fifth time when they beat Australia by just one goal in the final four years ago in Liverpool. Six of the players from that squad will compete at this year’s tournament, which takes place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from 28 July to 6 August.

Having since had to settle for bronze at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games after being beaten by Jamaica in the semi-final, the Silver Ferns are aware that repeating their heroics of four years ago will come with its challenges.

“I think there is pressure that goes along with whether you’re defending or not. Our messaging that we’d like to put across is that we are out there to win like everybody else,” explained Taurua, who has coached the Silver Ferns since 2018.

“I think Australia are number one because they are the best and you can’t deny the consistency of their ability to perform under intense pressure.

“I think another thing that we have to be mindful of is that everybody has the opportunity to put out a good performance every time [they are] out on court, you can’t negate anybody.

“So once again, what we do, how we approach every game is really important and if we do that right, then by the time we get to the end, we just play.”

New Zealand have been grouped in Pool D along with Uganda, Trinidad and Tobago, and Singapore, and Taurua knows that particularly the African side are likely to provide a tough challenge.

“Oh my gosh, when we played Uganda last year at the Commonwealth Games, they certainly gave us a tickle. For the players that we had it was a different type of style that they weren’t used to so we got run to the wire,” she admitted of the match that the Silver Ferns eventually won 53-40.

“Trinidad and Tobago, they’re similar – that Caribbean style – they’re really tough on the ball so our ability to once again withstand the physicality but also our ability to contest is really important.

“For us, every game is really important to show that we are improving as we build, hopefully, towards the end.”

Heading into the 2019 tournament, New Zealand hadn’t lifted the Netball World Cup trophy in 16 years, their previous triumph coming in Kingston, Jamaica in 2003. They have finished runner-up to Australia on eight occasions and also have two bronze medals in their collection – one of those from the 1995 tournament when Taurua was one of the players in the team.

With a win rate of 90 per cent at the Netball World Cup (120 victories in 134 matches), the New Zealanders are always a threat and they also hold the record for the largest winning margin in history, when they defeated Northern Ireland by 108 goals (112-4) back at the first tournament in 1963.

They might not be winning by such massive margins this time around but Taurua is convinced her players will put in a good showing.

“I’m very confident in the players that we’ve selected… so we’re really excited and can’t wait to get going,” she said.

New Zealand play their first match of the tournament against Trinidad and Tobago on 28 July before taking on Uganda on 29 July and Singapore a day later.

Details on tickets and travel packages to watch the Silver Ferns in action are all available on the official tournament website (www.nwc2023.org.za) with a range of tickets and packages still available.

Photo courtesy World Netball

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Australia crowned Netball World Cup champions for the 12th time as Jamaica clinch bronze

Final placings at the Netball World Cup 2023:

England down defending champions to reach first ever Netball World Cup final

Day 7: England and Jamaica stun world’s top two as Wales and Scotland win to book ninth-place showdown

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