In the first Test of a two match series, held in Newcastle, Australia on Saturday evening (Australia time), the England Netball team came close to upsetting the current World Champions by losing 42 - 39 in a tense and combative match.
The match was close all the way through, with England coming out after three quarters only trailing by one goal (33 - 32). The fourth quarter saw England close on a number of occasions, but were unable to ever take a critical lead.
National Coach Sue Hawkins, returning to her native Australia for the first time as England Coach, knows there is more to come from a very committed England team.
She said, ”We can improve our game by another 30% potentially in this series, and the series is far from over.”
The series concludes in Adelaide on Wednesday 8th October, before England travel to New Zealand for a three match series against the Silver Ferns.
England starting seven:
Rachel Dunn, Louisa Brownfield, Karen Atkinson, Jade Clark, Sara Bayman, Sonia Mkloma and Geva Mentor.
Substitutes used: Tamsin Greenway and Jo Binns.
Shooting stats:
Rachel Dunn 67% (10/15)
Louisa Brownfield 79% (23/29)
Tamsin Greenway 67% (6/9)
Louise Hudson, Sportsister
The Women’s Sports Magazine
Read Sportsister’s interview with England coach Sue Hawkins here
