ENGLAND fell agonisingly short of a Netball World Cup gold medal, but was able to still claim the silver, improving on its Commonwealth Games performance last year. The Roses went undefeated all the way to the final, but were unable to match Australia for four quarters in the decider.

The Roses can come away knowing they beat the Diamonds at another international event by a goal, but as many have found before – like Jamaica at the Commonwealth Games – it is difficult to beat the Diamonds twice. While settling for silver, England still managed to beat the Aussies and Silver Ferns in a tournament to be proud of.

RESULTS

Group B: 1st (3-0, +109 goal difference)

defeated Barbados by 61 goals (90-29)
defeated Malawi by 23 goals (62-39)
defeated Scotland by 25 goals (62-37)

Group F: 1st (5-0, +136 goal difference)

defeated Tonga by 26 goals (72-46)
defeated Fiji by 61 goals (89-28)
defeated Australia by 1 goal (56-55)

Semi-Final:

defeated New Zealand by 6 goals (46-40)

Gold Medal Match:

lost to Australia by 16 goals (61-45)

HIGHLIGHT

England’s win over Australia in the final match of the preliminary stage was a massive buzz for the Roses and their fans. In what was a momentum-swinging match, the underdogs came from six goals down at half-time to hit the front in the fourth term and then secure the win in the final minute of the match, 56-55.

Eleanor Cardwell – who scored the winning goal – put up 34 goals from 35 attempts, pairing well with Helen Housby who shot 22 goals at 100 per cent efficiency. Housby also had 12 goal assists, two gains, one deflection and one intercept. Up the other end of the court, Funmi Fadoju (four deflections, three gains, one intercept and two rebounds) was superb, and the experienced Chelsea Pitman had 11 goal assists in just 18 minutes on court.

STANDOUT PLAYER

Given Housby won the Player of the Tournament, it was impossible to go past her herculean efforts, shooting 162 goals but most importantly provided a team-high amount of goal assists as well. She continually set up Cardwell, while putting up her own volume of shots, with a whopping 106 feeds just one behind Pitman.

OTHERS

Cardwell really cemented her spot in the side in the absence of Jo Harten, scoring 231 goals and picking up 12 offensive rebounds. Pitman was slick with her passes into the circle when coming on for Natalie Metcalf who also had some big moments. Up the other end of the court, Geva Mentor ended her international career on a high with 14 rebounds, passing the baton onto Fadoju (30 deflections, 12 intercepts). Imogen Allison and Fran Williams also gave Roses fans a further glimpse into the future.

SUMMARY

England headed home just short of a gold medal, but with the confidence it could compete against quality lineups minus Harten. With a number of Roses either retiring or near the ends of their careers, the nation was able to give more minutes to the future of the squad, while rotating through the experienced veterans to provide the team with a mix of stability and flexibility.