Taurua still playing down expectations
AUCKLAND: Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua says her team has not yet earned the right to be considered the undisputed top of the netball world despite its recent wins over Australia.
New Zealand leads the bestoffour Constellation Cup against the Diamonds 21, with tomorrow’s clash in Perth to decide the winner.
The Silver Ferns beat Australia by a goal at the World Cup in July, and have twice beaten the Diamonds by the same margin during the current fourmatch series.
But Taurua just has to take one look at her country’s poor Constellation Cup history to know her team has some way to go before it can be considered the best in the world.
New Zealand has won the series just once in nine attempts since its inception in 2010.
That triumph arrived in 2012, with Australia winning the next six from that point on.
Beating Australia in a oneoff game at a World Cup or Commonwealth Games is tough.
But beating it over a fourgame series is an even bigger challenge, and one Taurua wants to see her team do consistently.
When asked whether she felt her team was now the hunted after its recent wins over Australia, Taurua replied: ‘‘I wish we could be in that position. It’s a work in progress.
‘‘This is a bit of a different beast for us in the Constellation Cup. I felt that the worlds were oneoffs.
‘‘But going backtoback four games in a row — you’ve got to be quite smart, strategic. You’ve got to be on your game.
‘‘We haven’t had the cup since 2012, and for us to back up from one game to another is a huge improvement.
‘‘I’d like to bask in the glory, but it’s not going to happen (until we win).’’
A win for Australia in Perth would level the series at 22, a
result that would secure it the Cup because of a better goal percentage.
Meanwhile, Diamonds coach Lisa Alexander said her players were still hurting and annoyed after last week’s onegoal loss to New Zealand, and she hopes Perth’s beaches will help them hit back hard tomorrow.
The Diamonds were given extra motivation this week when shooter Caitlin Thwaites announced her retirement.
The match will also mark captain Caitlin Bassett’s 100game milestone, giving the team plenty of reasons to bring out its best.
Alexander was guarded when asked about what team changes or tactics she was looking to employ for the series decider.
But she did give some cryptic clues as to how she had changed up the team’s preparation this week in a bid to get them firing for tomorrow’s game.
‘‘We’ve taken a different approach this week.
‘‘I’m not going to go into it just yet, I’ll talk about it after the match. Hopefully that will work and give them the spark that’s needed to get over the line.
‘‘People are humans, they’re not robots. They’re not Xs and Os on a whiteboard. It has to be a holistic look and view of how you set up your whole week.
‘‘It involves spirit, it involves the beaches of WA — that whole beautiful environment we’re in. All of that comes into how we prepare for this match.’’ — AAP