Ferns contenders have plenty to play for
Dame Noeline Taurua is feeling much chirpier about a onetime problem for the Silver Ferns – the shooting end. Just over a year ago, Taurua cut a frustrated figure talking to Stuff about the Ferns’ shooting options for the 2019 Netball World Cup.
The shooting quartet virtually picked themselves with several contenders not considered because they didn’t meet basic fitness standards.
Taurua wasn’t impressed at the time, saying: ‘‘I’m going into the Netball World Cup with my eyes wide open. There will be no excuses. I’m not prepared to say after the fact that we weren’t fit enough. It’s been said too many times.’’
She had the last laugh with the Ferns’ strength and conditioning a key pillar in their dramatic improvement and upset victory over Australia in the World Cup final.
Eleven months on and Taurua was satisfied with the growth New Zealand netball had made with fitness, especially among the shooters.
Broadening the Silver Ferns selection base over the next two years was a goal for the start of the new World Cup cycle and Taurua said fitness was non-negotiable.
‘‘For some of them the first step is meeting those standards, but they are shifting, and they are moving positively in the right way. I’m really pleased with the work some of them have done over the lockdown.
‘‘[Strength and conditioning], that’s going to boost the opportunities for them as individuals and hopefully also it’s going to extend our squad.’’
Taurua will get to see how much work the players have put in during their three months without competitive netball during the second round of the ANZ Premiership this weekend.
Covid-19 halted play after one round in mid-March and the season has been compacted into a two-month window.
The battle for Silver Ferns shooting spots will carry plenty of intrigue.
Shooting mainstay Maria Folau retired after October’s Constellation Cup, and season-ending knee injuries to Bailey Mes and promising uncapped goal attack Monica Falkner have dented the depth.
Ameliaranne Ekenasio, who captained the Ferns to the Nations Cup title, and goal shoot Maia Wilson, who starred during that tournament, shape as the first-choice combination.
Outside that, not much is certain.
Incumbent Te Paea Selby-Rickit should feature, but uncapped goal shoots Grace Nweke (Mystics), Ellie Bird (Tactix) and four-test Fern Aliyah Dunn (Pulse) might be fighting for one berth. Goal attack Tiana Metuarau, daughter of former Ferns coach and captain Wai Taumaunu is another, but needs courttime at the Pulse, which isn’t a given.
It remains unclear whether the Ferns will have any international netball this year. Netball New Zealand are optimistic the annual Constellation Cup series against Australia will go ahead, but that will depend on border restrictions.
Taurua had several key performance indicators she wanted from her shooters in the ANZ Premiership.
‘‘Fitness standards is a given for us now. The areas of the shooter is pretty much volume and accuracy. We also look for rebounds, so being strong underneath the post and movement is also an area that we’re looking for as well, or availability to the ball.
‘‘It’s now them demonstrating it out on court consistently from week to week and also under pressure.’’
The Ferns have no shortage of options in the midcourt with competition for spots fierce at wing attack, centre, and wing defence. Wing attack Grace Kara, a veteran of 63 tests, returns for the Stars after the birth of her first child, son Agape. Gina Crampton and Whitney Souness will be the favourites for the Ferns’ wing attack bib, but Taurua said they’d be silly not to monitor a player of Kara’s experience and class during the premiership. No midcourter has more to prove than Magic captain Samantha Winders, nee Sinclair, who’s played 34 tests since 2017.
Winders narrowly missed out on the World Cup last year, and wasn’t required for January’s Nations Cup either. It is make or break in the wing defence-centre’s career and Taurua praised her play against Steel wing attack Crampton in round one. ‘‘She was very dominant. At the end she was getting a lot of ball off the opposition without any interference. When she was on attack, she really drove the ball through in that attacking end.
‘‘I feel like she’s got the capability, she’s got the experience.’’
It won’t be easy for Winders with Tactix centre Kimiora Poi a highly rated youngster and Kiwi netball great Laura Langman, who plays for the Sunshine Coast Lightning in Australia, making it difficult for her to break through. Shannon Saunders was excellent at the World Cup and covers centre-wing attack. The return of Temalisi Fakahokotau (Tactix) and Kelly Jury (Pulse) from long injury layoffs only creates more selection headaches in the Ferns’ defensive circle.
Defensive legend Casey Kopua might have retired after the Ferns’ World Cup fairytale, but the stocks remain strong. Jane Watson, Karin Burger (who mainly plays wing defence for the Pulse), and Ferns centurion Katrina Rore are all ANZ Premiership standouts and will be automatic selections in any New Zealand squad this year. Add in World Cup winner Phoenix Karaka (Mystics) and there aren’t many holes. Meanwhile the Mystics beat the Magic 47-40 at last night’s opening match in Auckland.