Clean sweep for Silver Ferns in pool play
July 30, 2023
The Silver Ferns move on to the next stage of the Netball World Cup after completing a clean sweep of pool play following a convincing 80-19 win over Singapore in Cape Town on Sunday.
With previous 54-44 and 76-27 wins over Uganda and Trinidad and Tobago, respectively, the Silver Ferns topped Pool D, qualifying them for the Preliminary Stage two sector, in which the top three teams in each pool merge into Groups F and G.
Shooter Te Paea Selby-Rickit, midcourter Maddy Gordon and defender Jane Watson all played full games against Singapore as the Silver Ferns continued to build on their playing options and structures for the challenges ahead.
For captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio, the match wasn’t quite as clinical as hoped for.
“For us today, we tried to put in place a couple of our newer systems but which were a bit hit and miss at times,” she said.
“I think we still did really well but we need to tidy up on some of our one percenters. Sometimes it’s just that last touch on a pass or that last shot or taking our feet all the way thorough the ball… those are the things that potentially get us in the big games, so they’re the things we need to nail now.”
Selby-Rickit (goal shoot), who impressed against Uganda, and Gordon (centre) got their first starts of the tournament while after a couple of earlier tasters, Kelly Jury got her first start at wing defence against the much shorter Singapore team.
With quarter-time leads of 17-7, 41-9 and 61-14, the Silver Ferns were never in any danger and after overcoming a slow start kept the scoreboard ticking over at a quick clip.
Mobile and fleet-footed, Singapore got away to a confident start, finishing off accurate build-up play with some fine shooting and play-making skills from goal attack Kai Wei Toh. Getting the ball through the hoop was paramount for Singapore as any rebound opportunities were gobbled up by the much taller Watson and Phoenix Karaka.
On the back of a smothering defensive effort and slick attacking momentum, the Silver Ferns lifted several notches during the second stanza. With the injection of Kate Heffernan (wing defence) and Maia Wilson (goal attack), the New Zealanders set the tone with a 10-1 start to the stanza.
The pressure told on Singapore as errors created turnovers, with Watson and Karaka latching on to plenty of intercept gains. Gordon added plenty of punch and spark while always being on hand to pick up the scraps.
Selby-Rickit played a strong hand with her movement and accuracy under the hoop, converting 29 from 31 in her first half efforts as the Silver Ferns out-scored their opponents 24-2.
Grace Nweke was introduced for the third quarter but after slotting 12 from 13 shots, returned to the sideline after tweaking her knee. Jury was back on at wing defence while Selby-Rickit had a run at goal attack.
The Silver Ferns continued to dominate the scoreboard while causing Singapore all sorts of problems under their own hoop, their shooting accuracy being dismantled by the constant menacing presence of Watson and Karaka.
Despite making a raft of changes throughout, Singapore could do little to stem the relentless wave of Silver Ferns attacking raids.
Combining with the top three Pool C sides in Group G, New Zealand is set to face Jamaica, hosts South Africa, and Wales in the cross-over matches for the second phase of the tournament, starting with Wales at 9pm on Monday night (NZ time).
Previous matches between each nation within a pool count towards Groups F and G standings and teams will only face the three teams from the opposite pools in stage two. Playing schedules will depend on the finishing order of the preliminary stage one matches.
With previous 54-44 and 76-27 wins over Uganda and Trinidad and Tobago, respectively, the Silver Ferns topped Pool D, qualifying them for the Preliminary Stage two sector, in which the top three teams in each pool merge into Groups F and G.
Shooter Te Paea Selby-Rickit, midcourter Maddy Gordon and defender Jane Watson all played full games against Singapore as the Silver Ferns continued to build on their playing options and structures for the challenges ahead.
For captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio, the match wasn’t quite as clinical as hoped for.
“For us today, we tried to put in place a couple of our newer systems but which were a bit hit and miss at times,” she said.
“I think we still did really well but we need to tidy up on some of our one percenters. Sometimes it’s just that last touch on a pass or that last shot or taking our feet all the way thorough the ball… those are the things that potentially get us in the big games, so they’re the things we need to nail now.”
Selby-Rickit (goal shoot), who impressed against Uganda, and Gordon (centre) got their first starts of the tournament while after a couple of earlier tasters, Kelly Jury got her first start at wing defence against the much shorter Singapore team.
With quarter-time leads of 17-7, 41-9 and 61-14, the Silver Ferns were never in any danger and after overcoming a slow start kept the scoreboard ticking over at a quick clip.
Mobile and fleet-footed, Singapore got away to a confident start, finishing off accurate build-up play with some fine shooting and play-making skills from goal attack Kai Wei Toh. Getting the ball through the hoop was paramount for Singapore as any rebound opportunities were gobbled up by the much taller Watson and Phoenix Karaka.
On the back of a smothering defensive effort and slick attacking momentum, the Silver Ferns lifted several notches during the second stanza. With the injection of Kate Heffernan (wing defence) and Maia Wilson (goal attack), the New Zealanders set the tone with a 10-1 start to the stanza.
The pressure told on Singapore as errors created turnovers, with Watson and Karaka latching on to plenty of intercept gains. Gordon added plenty of punch and spark while always being on hand to pick up the scraps.
Selby-Rickit played a strong hand with her movement and accuracy under the hoop, converting 29 from 31 in her first half efforts as the Silver Ferns out-scored their opponents 24-2.
Grace Nweke was introduced for the third quarter but after slotting 12 from 13 shots, returned to the sideline after tweaking her knee. Jury was back on at wing defence while Selby-Rickit had a run at goal attack.
The Silver Ferns continued to dominate the scoreboard while causing Singapore all sorts of problems under their own hoop, their shooting accuracy being dismantled by the constant menacing presence of Watson and Karaka.
Despite making a raft of changes throughout, Singapore could do little to stem the relentless wave of Silver Ferns attacking raids.
Combining with the top three Pool C sides in Group G, New Zealand is set to face Jamaica, hosts South Africa, and Wales in the cross-over matches for the second phase of the tournament, starting with Wales at 9pm on Monday night (NZ time).
Previous matches between each nation within a pool count towards Groups F and G standings and teams will only face the three teams from the opposite pools in stage two. Playing schedules will depend on the finishing order of the preliminary stage one matches.