At Cape Town International Convention Centre, Cape Town: Jamaica 59 (Jhaniele Fowler: 49/49, Shanice Beckford: 9/10, Romelda Aiken-George: 1/3) Silver Ferns 48 (Maia Wilson: 31/33, Ameliaranne Ekenasio: 17/18) 1Q: 15-11, HT: 26-23, 3Q: 41-39.
Jamaica are officially the Silver Ferns’ tormentors at major netball tournaments.
Twelve months after thumping the Ferns by 16 goals at the Commonwealth Games, the Sunshine Girls triumphed again 59-48 in the Ferns’ final crossover game at the Netball World Cup.
It was Jamaica’s third straight win over the Ferns at a major tournament when you add in their bronze medal win at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
The loss to Jamaica caps a disappointing finish to the crossover stage for the Ferns, who faded late against South Africa to draw 48-48 earlier on Thursday (NZ time).
Those results mean New Zealand should finish second in Group G, barring a 63 goal win for South Africa over Uganda in their final pool game. New Zealand look set for a semifinal showdown on Saturday night (NZ time) against England, who upset Australia 56-55 earlier in the day to finish first in Group F.
This was Jamaica’s first win over the Ferns at a World Cup from 13 attempts, but they won’t have long to savour it with a semifinal clash against Australia awaiting.
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Ferns wing defence Kelly Jury battles with Jamaica’s Shanice Beckford for possession.
Star Jamaican shooter Jhaniele Fowler, who spent five years with the Southern Steel from 2013-17, was again a thorn in New Zealand’s side.
Fowler shot a perfect 54 from 54 in last year’s semifinal victory at the Commonwealth Games and was again flawless – finishing with 49 from 49.
New Zealand picked up enough turnover ball with Jane Watson and Karin Burger trying valiantly at the back, but paid the price for too many silly turnovers. Held balls, offensive contact, and misdirected passes all cost the Ferns at crucial times.
Getting the ball into the shooting circle was hard-going for the Ferns’ attackers against tough Jamaican defence, who had to rattle off the passes to get it into the shooters’ hands.
Jamaica finished the game with 11 more attempts than the Ferns, missing just three of their 62 shots.
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Silver Ferns centre Kate Heffernan wins the ball in the midcourt.
Early in the second quarter, the Ferns were in a spot of bother trailing by six goals (17-11) with Jamaica making a strong start to the term.
New Zealand resettled and began to lift their game defensively, forcing Jamaica into errors higher up court.
A storming finish to close out the first half saw Jamaica take a three goal advantage into halftime, leading 26-23. Both sides had 26 attempts in the first half with Jamaica perfect in front of goal and the Ferns missing three shots.
Dame Noeline Taurua sprang a selection surprise in her starting seven going with circle defender Kelly Jury at wing defence – trying to utilise her 24cm height advantage to shut down wing attack Khadijah Williams.
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New Zealand’s Kelly Jury battles for the ball with Jamaica’s Khadijah Williams.
Burger was partnered with Watson in a defensive circle that was so effective for the Tactix in the ANZ Premiership.
Incumbent wing attack Gina Crampton dropped to the bench with Whitney Souness getting the nod at wing attack.
Jamaica were dealt a blow late in the first half when outstanding defender Shamera Sterling limped off the court with a rolled ankle. Sterling received a loud applause when she re-entered the action midway through the third quarter.
After a poor finish to the South African game, where the Ferns blew a six goal lead with eight minutes to go, New Zealand came out firing.
Burger picked up an early intercept and the Ferns’ attacking connections were working well as they jumped out to an early lead.
Jamaica are a tough side to defend to against with the 1.98m height of Fowler and can quickly rack up the goals.
Trailing 10-7 late in the first quarter, Jamaica went on a scoring burst to close out the term to take a handy 15-11 buffer into the first break.
New Zealand made several mini runs at Jamaica, trimming their lead to two early in the final quarter.
Every time the Ferns threatened, they let themselves down with a silly mistake, coughing the ball straight back to Jamaica.
The scoreline started to blow out late in the game with Jamaica pushing their advantage out past 10 goals, rubbing salt into the Silver Ferns’ wounds.
Best on court
How can you go past former Steel standout Fowler, who was brilliant again for the Sunshine Girls against the Ferns. Once she gets the ball in her hands in the circle, it’s almost always a goal.
The big moment
After trailing most of the game, New Zealand had a sniff, down by two, early in the final quarter. If they had broken up a Jamaican centre pass and capitalised from it, it could have been level. Jamaica instead scored three straight goals to push ahead.
Match rating: 7/10
Jamaica always seemed to have their noses slightly in front, following a positive early start from the Ferns. It was a good willing contest, but not quite as intense as the England-Australia classic played just before this game.
The big picture
After two unconvincing performances, it’s knockout time for the Ferns. They’ll face a confident England side in Saturday’s semifinal, who will be fizzing after rolling Australia. England will head in with form on their side, but don’t have a great record in Netball World Cup semifinals.
