Disastrous Ferns face world cup mountain
TWO important things happened within the Silver Ferns’ environment this year: the players were finally allowed to call the shots defensively and the team didn’t completely implode.
You can’t overstate how critical those things could be to the success of the team at the 2015 World Cup after a, frankly, disastrous 2014.
Rarely did the team play well and, sadly, losses became all too commonplace.
Injuries or not, New Zealand got what they deserved in the Commonwealth Games final. They’d faltered all tournament and, as soon became clear in the Constellation Cup, their 58-40 defeat in the decider at Edinburgh was not an aberration.
Even now players make vague or veiled references to ‘‘the Comm Games’’ and what did or didn’t happen there and how well the team did to get through that reasonably intact. That campaign was not a bed of roses and may subsequently be referred back to as a defining moment in the evolution of the team.
The devastating knee injury suffered by captain Casey Kopua was another and galvanised the group. Her play during the year was nothing short of outstanding and she has truly become the leader of that team.
It will be interesting to see what dividends come from head coach Waimarama Taumaunu ceding control of the defensive end.
That change was player driven and, belated or not, it was encouraging that Taumaunu recognised Joline Henry, Kopua, Katrina Grant and Leana de Bruin were at a point in their careers where they knew best.
The players were not happy with the tactics they’d been asked to employ and that’s understood to have built a resentment that was only exacerbated by the struggles of their team-mates at the attacking end. The connections between feeders and shooters, the volume of shots the Silver Ferns were putting up and their success rate were all poor this year.
Irene van Dyk, who retired midyear, wouldn’t have changed that. The feeders had struggled to find her for some time and her volume was way down as a result.
Given the gap the team are trying to bridge between themselves and Australia there’s no place in the squad for division – be it between defenders and attackers and players and coaches. That is criti- cal. The makings of a World Cupwinning team exist. Kopua, Grant and Henry are an experienced and formidable defensive trio.
Grace Rasmussen made progress at wing attack while, in the shooting circle, Jodi Brown’s all round game proved an asset and Bailey Mes and Ameliaranne Wells emerged as useful options.
On talent alone, Maria Tutaia and Cathrine Latu ought to be the first choice shooting combination. It’s up to them to prove they still warrant that status.
People will give up on
netball and the Silver Ferns unless they can begin to beat Australia. As for losing to England, as the team did late in the season, that’s just unacceptable.
Thankfully that.
On the franchise front, the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic overachieved by making the transTasman Netball League playoffs. The Central Pulse and Northern Mystics under-achieved and the Southern Steel and Mainland Tactix performed largely to their potential.
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