Silver Ferns remain on course despite loss to Jamaica
August 3, 2023
The Silver Ferns put up a spirited challenge before being subdued 59-48 by Jamaica, but remain in strong contention to advance to the semi finals of the Netball World Cup in Cape Town.
A draw with South Africa in their previous match put some doubt on whether the Silver Ferns would progress to the medal matches but enjoying a healthy differential of 74 goals means the Proteas need to beat Uganda by 63 goals in their last match to surpass the New Zealanders.
The Silver Ferns tinkered with their starting seven for the all-important match-up against the Sunshine Girls on Thursday with Whitney Souness getting the start at wing attack, Kelly Jury being preferred as a disruptive presence at wing defence and Jane Watson lining up in the custodian’s role under the hoop.
With their talent spread around the various global netball leagues, Jamaica, in recent years, have built a formidable line-up capable of footing it with all-comers on the international stage and so it proved when beating the Silver Ferns for the first time in 12 World Cup meetings between the pair.
With a settled line-up remaining until the latter stages of the final quarter, the Silver Ferns, after a quick turnaround, were a much-improved unit and well in the contest until a storming last quarter by Jamaica put the brakes on any sniff of a New Zealand win.
Jamaica topped the group and will play Australia, who were earlier pipped by England, in Saturday’s semi finals while the Roses will take on either the Silver Ferns or South Africa at 9pm on Saturday (NZ time).
The Silver Ferns made the best of starts to score the first three goals but once into their work Jamaica slowly shifted momentum in their favour. The New Zealanders showed more purpose and decisive movement on attack, needing to keep the ball moving to slow the menacing presence of standout defenders Jodi-Ann Ward and Shamera Sterling.
Shooters Maia Wilson and Ameliaranne Ekenasio had their moments, but the towering presence of Jhaniele Fowler at the other end helped the Sunshine Girls carve out a 15-11 first quarter advantage.
Both teams retained their starting line-ups on the resumption, the Silver Ferns under the pump early as they struggled to get the ball circle-bound. Losing ground, the New Zealanders stuck to their guns with dogged defence from Karin Burger and centre Kate Heffernan helping them get back into the contest.
Constantly on the move, Souness was always available on attack, quick ball movement helping Wilson and Ekenasio find strong positioning under the hoop. The Silver Ferns levelled up with six minutes to go as a goal-for-goal stand-off ensued while also slowing Jamaica’s through-court progress.
A late burst from Jamaica dented the Silver Ferns strong position, shooting accuracy being the main difference with both teams having 26 attempts as Jamaica took a 26-23 lead into the main break.
After winning the second quarter by one goal, the Silver Ferns repeated the dose in an equally tight third quarter, pushing Jamaica all the way in an increasingly absorbing contest.
The Silver Ferns shooters found good space in the shooting circle with captain Ekenasio getting through a huge workload, doing her job expertly on attack while also chipping in on defence.
In a fine all-round team effort, the New Zealanders remained unchanged through the third stanza and steadfastly refused to let Jamaica get the better of them. Well in truly in the contest, throughout, the main stumbling block was the dominant presence of Fowler, her height, positioning and pinpoint accuracy helping her gain the upper hand and keeping Jamaica on the front foot when taking a 41-39 lead into the last break.
A draw with South Africa in their previous match put some doubt on whether the Silver Ferns would progress to the medal matches but enjoying a healthy differential of 74 goals means the Proteas need to beat Uganda by 63 goals in their last match to surpass the New Zealanders.
The Silver Ferns tinkered with their starting seven for the all-important match-up against the Sunshine Girls on Thursday with Whitney Souness getting the start at wing attack, Kelly Jury being preferred as a disruptive presence at wing defence and Jane Watson lining up in the custodian’s role under the hoop.
With their talent spread around the various global netball leagues, Jamaica, in recent years, have built a formidable line-up capable of footing it with all-comers on the international stage and so it proved when beating the Silver Ferns for the first time in 12 World Cup meetings between the pair.
With a settled line-up remaining until the latter stages of the final quarter, the Silver Ferns, after a quick turnaround, were a much-improved unit and well in the contest until a storming last quarter by Jamaica put the brakes on any sniff of a New Zealand win.
Jamaica topped the group and will play Australia, who were earlier pipped by England, in Saturday’s semi finals while the Roses will take on either the Silver Ferns or South Africa at 9pm on Saturday (NZ time).
The Silver Ferns made the best of starts to score the first three goals but once into their work Jamaica slowly shifted momentum in their favour. The New Zealanders showed more purpose and decisive movement on attack, needing to keep the ball moving to slow the menacing presence of standout defenders Jodi-Ann Ward and Shamera Sterling.
Shooters Maia Wilson and Ameliaranne Ekenasio had their moments, but the towering presence of Jhaniele Fowler at the other end helped the Sunshine Girls carve out a 15-11 first quarter advantage.
Both teams retained their starting line-ups on the resumption, the Silver Ferns under the pump early as they struggled to get the ball circle-bound. Losing ground, the New Zealanders stuck to their guns with dogged defence from Karin Burger and centre Kate Heffernan helping them get back into the contest.
Constantly on the move, Souness was always available on attack, quick ball movement helping Wilson and Ekenasio find strong positioning under the hoop. The Silver Ferns levelled up with six minutes to go as a goal-for-goal stand-off ensued while also slowing Jamaica’s through-court progress.
A late burst from Jamaica dented the Silver Ferns strong position, shooting accuracy being the main difference with both teams having 26 attempts as Jamaica took a 26-23 lead into the main break.
After winning the second quarter by one goal, the Silver Ferns repeated the dose in an equally tight third quarter, pushing Jamaica all the way in an increasingly absorbing contest.
The Silver Ferns shooters found good space in the shooting circle with captain Ekenasio getting through a huge workload, doing her job expertly on attack while also chipping in on defence.
In a fine all-round team effort, the New Zealanders remained unchanged through the third stanza and steadfastly refused to let Jamaica get the better of them. Well in truly in the contest, throughout, the main stumbling block was the dominant presence of Fowler, her height, positioning and pinpoint accuracy helping her gain the upper hand and keeping Jamaica on the front foot when taking a 41-39 lead into the last break.