Silver Ferns unable to stop resurgent Diamonds
October 8, 2017
The Silver Ferns could not stop Australia taking a firm grip on the Constellation Cup after the Diamonds surged to a 60-52 win in the second Test in Christchurch today.
The game followed a similar pattern to Thursday’s three-goal loss, the Silver Ferns having their moments to stay in touch throughout, but ultimately unable to thwart Australia’s dominance and stamp their own mark.
There were promising passages from the Silver Ferns but they could not match an improved Diamonds who showed dogged determination in all areas.
Winning the two match-ups in New Zealand has handed the Diamonds a big advantage as the series now heads to Australia with the third Test being staged in Adelaide on Wednesday and the fourth in Sydney on Saturday.
Both teams resisted the temptation for change when employing the same starting sevens from the first Test, in the Silver Ferns case, Maria Tutaia assuming the goal shoot position in the only positional change.
The Silver Ferns made the best of starts, capitalising on Australian errors to score the first three goals before skipping out to a 9-5 lead.
Both teams were strong defensively, the Silver Ferns losing their early advantage when the Diamonds ended the first quarter with a flurry of five unanswered goals to forge a 14-11 lead at the first break.
With captain Caitlin Bassett asserting her dominance under the hoop, Australia threatened to break loose when surging to a six-goal advantage. The introduction of Te Paea Selby-Rickit for Bailey Mes midway through the spell helped arrest the damage as the Silver Ferns staged a spirited revival.
Finding more flow on attack and forcing Australia into errors defensively, the Silver Ferns clawed their way to keep the quarter on even terms, the visitors maintaining their three-goal advantage when taking a 29-26 lead at the main break.
Kayla Cullen and Temalisi Fakahokotau were introduced to the Silver Ferns defensive line for the second half but it was the Diamonds who had the better of a productive third quarter.
Liz Watson shone on attack with her prominent feeding positions while the Diamonds solid defensive wall, where goalkeeper Courtney Bruce was once again a standout, proved a stumbling block for the Silver Ferns to penetrate on attack.
As they had done throughout, the Silver Ferns ensured they stayed in touch with a late surge, chipping into a seven-goal deficit courtesy of two late bombs from Tutaia. Australia were still in the box seat when leading 44-39 at the last turn but in an absorbing tussle, there was still plenty to play for in the run home.
The third Test of the Constellation Cup will be played in Adelaide on Wednesday 11 October, with live coverage on SKY Sport from 9.30pm (NZT).
The game followed a similar pattern to Thursday’s three-goal loss, the Silver Ferns having their moments to stay in touch throughout, but ultimately unable to thwart Australia’s dominance and stamp their own mark.
There were promising passages from the Silver Ferns but they could not match an improved Diamonds who showed dogged determination in all areas.
Winning the two match-ups in New Zealand has handed the Diamonds a big advantage as the series now heads to Australia with the third Test being staged in Adelaide on Wednesday and the fourth in Sydney on Saturday.
Both teams resisted the temptation for change when employing the same starting sevens from the first Test, in the Silver Ferns case, Maria Tutaia assuming the goal shoot position in the only positional change.
The Silver Ferns made the best of starts, capitalising on Australian errors to score the first three goals before skipping out to a 9-5 lead.
Both teams were strong defensively, the Silver Ferns losing their early advantage when the Diamonds ended the first quarter with a flurry of five unanswered goals to forge a 14-11 lead at the first break.
With captain Caitlin Bassett asserting her dominance under the hoop, Australia threatened to break loose when surging to a six-goal advantage. The introduction of Te Paea Selby-Rickit for Bailey Mes midway through the spell helped arrest the damage as the Silver Ferns staged a spirited revival.
Finding more flow on attack and forcing Australia into errors defensively, the Silver Ferns clawed their way to keep the quarter on even terms, the visitors maintaining their three-goal advantage when taking a 29-26 lead at the main break.
Kayla Cullen and Temalisi Fakahokotau were introduced to the Silver Ferns defensive line for the second half but it was the Diamonds who had the better of a productive third quarter.
Liz Watson shone on attack with her prominent feeding positions while the Diamonds solid defensive wall, where goalkeeper Courtney Bruce was once again a standout, proved a stumbling block for the Silver Ferns to penetrate on attack.
As they had done throughout, the Silver Ferns ensured they stayed in touch with a late surge, chipping into a seven-goal deficit courtesy of two late bombs from Tutaia. Australia were still in the box seat when leading 44-39 at the last turn but in an absorbing tussle, there was still plenty to play for in the run home.
The third Test of the Constellation Cup will be played in Adelaide on Wednesday 11 October, with live coverage on SKY Sport from 9.30pm (NZT).