DIAMONDS WILL HAVE TO STEP UP

What now for Australian netball?

The last we saw of the Australian Diamonds they were a tearful mess, grieving for the gold that slipped away after England – England – potted the winning goal in the Commonwealth Games final.

The post mortems started almost immediately. Australia’s Super Netball, with its no limit import policy, was sharpening the ranks of overseas players.

Case in point: the Kiwis, once powerhouses of international netball, left the Gold Coast without a medal after effectively banning its players from super netball. Those who’ve chosen to play in the comp are not eligible for Silver Ferns selection.

Australian netball commentator Sue Gaudion says exposure to Australia’s elite competition week-to-week has taken away the one thing Australia always had going for it: its fear factor. “Players from other countries are now teammates or opponents who they see weekly,” she says. “They know each other, often they’re friends. That’s changed the dynamic.”

The next we’ll see of the Diamonds is in the Quad Cup in September, followed by the Constellation Cup series against the Kiwis in October. But they will all be preliminary to the Netball World Cup in England in July next year.

“The irony is that all the pressure in 2019 will be on England,” Gaudion says. “They’ll be in a position they’ve never been in before.

“I’d expect the Australians to come in more aggressive than they’ve ever been. They know they’ll have to be better, to step up. It’s an intriguing period in world netball.”