THERE was plenty to take out of the 2021 Roses Reunited Series, with England defeated Jamaica 2-1 this week. Whilst England comfortably took out the first two games, the Sunshine Girls hit back to grab the last, so what can we take out of the matches.

FIVE THINGS WE LEARNT

1 England is a serious Commonwealth Games threat

Roses fans should not be too dismayed by dropping the final game. It was not perfect, but with the upcoming January Quad Series set to be another step up, England is exactly where it needs to be. There were enough signs to suggest multiple players have booked a trip to the Commonwealth Games that were not quite in yet. Those names include Eleanor Cardwell, Beth Cobden and Eboni Usoro-Brown who added extra coverage to each third of the court and deservedly shone when given the chance.

2 Jamaica needs to find a consistent attacking midcourter

The Sunshine Girls have a strong five-player squad in the sense that their defensive and scoring ends are settled. While Shanice Beckford is not a high-volume shooter, she does not need to be with the world’s most reliable shooter Jhaniele Fowler beside her, and she offers is terrific support through her feeds in the circle to Fowler’s advantage. The defensive trio of Shamera Sterling, Kadie-Ann Dehaney and Latanya Wilson are as good as any. Adean Thomas has shown great glimpses, but against the top nations, the Jamaicans really need that player who can consistently feed into the circle.

3 Eleanor Cardwell gave English selectors something serious to think about

Whilst she had a strong series in New Zealand, Cardwell was always going to be behind both Jo Harten and Helen Housby in the shooting circle. But when she got her chance 10 minutes into the second quarter of game one, Cardwell took her chance. She was England’s best shooter across the tournament, and worked well with both of her more experienced teammates. Her holding and consistency off hands was a sight to behold.

4 Jamaica’s game plan simple but effective

The Jamaicans made life too complicated across the first two games, with a lot of piercing passes which were well read by the Roses defence. In game three, the Sunshine Girls put up the high balls nearly every time they fed into the circle. That played into Fowler’s hands, and her opponents could do nothing to stop her. It might be a simple game plan, but Jamaica does not need to reinvent the wheel to beat bigger nations, just get the ball to Fowler and let her go to work. Feeding it high is the key.

5 England has enviable depth

It might go without saying given the Roses are ranked third in the world, but the Roses are right up there with Australia and New Zealand when it comes to their depth. They do dip into the VNSL – much like the Aussies do with SSN and the Silver Ferns do with ANZ Premiership – which is considered the weaker of the three competitions, but it shows that the likes of Cardwell, Serena Guthrie and Cobden can maintain touch there and still impact heavily on the international stage.