Silver Ferns finish out of the medals in Cape Town
A luckless Silver Ferns finished a disappointing Netball World Cup campaign empty-handed after losing 52-45 to Jamaica in the bronze medal match in Cape Town on Monday.
In this year’s 16th edition, the Silver Ferns never completely recovered from losing key shooter Grace Nweke in the opening days of the tournament which left the attack end constantly trying to find its systems and consistency.
Led by the defence end, the Silver Ferns, once again, competed gamely and were right in the contest against the Sunshine Girls but as in previous games holding their composure on attack in the critical moments proved costly.
“They gave it their all and that’s all you can ask,” Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua said.
“I thought whenever someone new went on, they did make some impact and it just came down to our ability to hold in certain moments and that’s what it’s about. I’m proud that the girls gave it their all.
“Not having a settled spine has made it a challenging campaign. We were trying to work out our seven as we were going along and it never eventuated, then it was more about consistency of performance and you’ve just got to get on with it.
“That’s the lay of the land with this current team. I’m still quite excited by some of the players out there, there’s some young blood coming through and they’ll learn a lot from this experience.”
From their previous match against Jamaica in the last of the group stages, the Silver Ferns tinkered with several position. Maddy Gordon got the nod at centre, Kate Heffernan moved over to wing defence and Gina Crampton came in at wing attack while Phoenix Karaka and Kelly Jury made up the in-circle defensive pairing.
Jamaica started with the same seven who beat the Silver Ferns by 11 goals three days ago.
Getting away to a cracking start, the Silver Ferns faced an early setback when Crampton was forced from the court with an ankle injury just 2-1/2 minutes into the game to be replaced by Whitney Souness.
Gordon’s added pace was evident from the outset with her strong drives giving the New Zealanders much-needed impetus on attack. Playing with plenty of energy and intent, the Silver Ferns bolted out to a four-goal lead before Jamaica steadied their ship.
With a run of pin-point feeds from centre Nicole Dixon-Rochester to key shooter Jhaniele Fowler, Jamaica finished with a strong run to nail a 14-11 lead at the first break.
Te Paea Selby-Rickit replaced Maia Wilson under the hoop on the resumption as the match continued to be a fast-paced exciting spectacle.
Karaka and Jury did a fine job in ensuring the Jamaican shooters earnt their keep, clever goal attack Shanice Beckford coming into her own as a valuable support for the under-pressure Fowler.
At the other end, defender Jodi-Ann Ward’s closing speed helped her pick off valuable turnover ball while both sides suffered offensive penalty calls, errors from both sides adding to the drama.
Tiana Metuarau was injected for captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio late in the piece, Jamaica retaining their three-goal advantage when leading 24-21 at the main break after a drawn quarter.
An eventful third quarter helped turn momentum Jamaica’s way as the Silver Ferns suffered some wobbly moments on attack.
A bloodied shin forced Gordon off the court causing a reshuffle, with Karin Burger being injected and Wilson and Ekenasio also returning. A run of five straight goals pushed the Sunshine Girls out to a handy eight-goal buffer while defenders Ward and Shamera Sterling continuing to be a disruptive presence under the New Zealand hoop.
The Silver Ferns faced an uphill battle with Jamaica holding a decisive edge when leading 38-32 at the last turn.