Quad Series latest blow for Ferns
The Silver Ferns will renew their great rivalry with Australia later this year but games against South Africa and England scheduled for September have been canned.
The Quad Series has been confirmed as the latest sporting casualty of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the tournament’s participants agreeing that current restrictions on international travel made it impossible.
‘‘All four participating nations have together looked at various scenarios to see if we could make it work however we all agreed that due to impact of Covid-19 on international travel cancelling the 2020 Netball Quad Series scheduled for September was the only option,‘‘ said Netball New Zealand head of high performance Keir Hansen.
‘‘Last year we hosted a very successful Cadbury Netball Series that included the NZ Men’s Invitational team and the All Stars side.
‘‘We are now considering all our options for our Cadbury Netball Series which would likely be scheduled in October and depending on travel restrictions then the Constellation Cup once Australia finish their domestic league.’’
Netball Australia executive general manager of performance Stacey West echoed that message.
‘‘With great disappointment, and after much deliberation and possible scenario planning, all four participating nations agreed that cancelling the 2020 Quad Series scheduled for September was the most viable option,’’ she said.
‘‘It’s a significant blow to our Diamonds program, we won’t have an opportunity to play against the Roses and Proteas this year, however, we’re hopeful that our team will make it onto the court for the Constellation Cup with the Silver Ferns later this year, depending on how the Covid-19 situation evolves in the coming months.’’
The cancellation of the Quad Series is a blow for international netball but the Silver Ferns showed last year they could be innovative in terms of finding opponents.
The Silver Ferns lost twice to the NZ Men’s Invitational side last June, losing the final of the series final 66-54 at Pulman Arena in South Auckland.
Coach Noeline Taurua arranged the games so her side could face tough opposition on the eve of the World Cup, and by playing them in public, rather than behind closed doors, a lot of eyes will have been opened to the potential of the men’s game.
‘‘There are a lot of battered and bruised bodies, even coming out of the first game, but that’s what we needed,’’ Taurua said after the second loss.
‘‘We needed to test ourselves and see what we needed to do in regards to management of bodies, but also to be really competitive out there, and I thought that we were, which is the most pleasing aspect of our game.’’