THOUGH it was not always smooth sailing for Barbados, the Bajan Gems did what they needed to do to avoid the bottom two spots and finish 14th overall at the 2023 Netball World Cup. Recruiting a couple of talented Roses, the Bajan Gems have shown potential at international events, and though there were some forgettable losses, they also had some terrific individual efforts.

RESULTS

Group B: 4th (0-3, -106 goal difference)

lost to England by 61 goals (29-90)
lost to Scotland by 9 goals (44-53)
lost to Malawi by 36 goals (48-84)

Group E: 2nd (2-1, +18 goal difference)

defeated Zimbabwe by 17 goals (62-45)
defeated Singapore by 5 goals (55-50)
lost to Sri Lanka by 4 goals (56-60)

13th Placed Playoff:

lost to Zimbabwe by 27 goals (48-75)

HIGHLIGHT

By far the highlight of the tournament was the comfortable 17-goal win over Zimbabwe to open the Group E proceedings after finishing fourth in Group B. Though competitive against Scotland, the Bajan Gems’ 62-45 triumph over Zimbabwe was one to savour. The consistency was on show across their two clashes with the African nation turning it around in the 13th Placed Playoff, running away 27-goal winners.

In the Group E win, Barbados piled on 35 goals to 16 in the first half to jump Zimbabwe and ultimately set up the win. Kadeen Corbin (38 goals from 42 attempts, five goal assists, three rebounds, two deflections and a gain) was superb with sister Sasha Corbin (23 goal assists) getting in on the act. Experienced Bajan Gem Latonia Blackman also shot 23 goals from 28 attempts and had nine goal assists and one rebound, while Faye Agard was rock solid in defence with three intercepts, four gains, one deflection and one rebound.

STANDOUT PLAYER

The importance of the Corbin sisters could not be overstated, with the pair knowing each other so well and creating cohesion and consistency in the forward half. Kadeen ended up shooting 175 goals across the tournament, with Sasha providing numerous attacking forays to both her and Blackman in the shooting circle. Kadeen also had 15 offensive rebounds and fought hard in every contest.

OTHERS

Blackman benefited from the Corbin sisters arrival from the Roses program, shooting 112 goals and being able to play a key backup role rather than being the main target. It also freed up the versatile Agard to just lock down in defence for the majority of the tournament, collecting 14 defensive rebounds, eight deflections and six intercepts. Fellow defender Akeena Stoute was another who was strong throughout, with eight deflections, five defensive rebounds and six intercepts.

SUMMARY

Barbados came away from the tournament with the two wins, but ultimately the Bajan Gems would have liked to have finish 13th. At their best, they should have had Zimbabwe covered as they did in the group stage, but did not perform to their best in the playoffs. The loss to Sri Lanka hurt the most, but it was a great learning curve for Barbados going forward.