Ferns and Diamonds to fight for gold
AMANDA LULHAM AS Australia prepare for their last netball international of the year, captain Caitlin Bassett is forecasting it will be the Diamonds and Silver Ferns fighting over the gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.
England and South Africa might be on the up but the Diamonds sharpshooter still believes it will be Australia and New Zealand in the main game.
Australia and New Zealand have this month been involved in an engrossing battle for the Constellation Cup which concludes today at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney.
Both sides have continued to experiment with their lines during the annual series but have also made it clear how serious they have taken the contests. These matches have given Bassett the intel to predict Australia’s old nemesis will remain their chief foes on the Gold Coast.
“I still think it will be us and them,’’ Bassett said. “England have improved immensely and so have South Africa.
“But I think Australia and New Zealand still have the experience to get through.’’
England defeated New Zealand last month in the Quad series, however, they also lost to South Africa.
The four-game Constel- lation Cup has doubled as an audition for Australian players wanting to make the 12strong team to compete on the Gold Coast. Lisa Alexander says she wants to be pretty close to knowing the makeup of the Commonwealth Games by the end of the Constellation Cup.
“I think what you will see is we will get the data from this series and that will have a big effect,” she said.