Australia take commanding 2-0 Constellation Cup lead ...
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Ferns goal shoot Grace Nweke puts up an attempt in her return from injury on Sunday.
At Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Brisbane: Australia 55 (Cara Koenen: 33/33, Kiera Austin: 21/26, Sophie Dwyer: 1/1) Silver Ferns 46 (Amelia Walmsley: 17/19, Ameliaranne Ekenasio: 6/9, Grace Nweke: 21/24, Tiana Metuarau: 2/2) 1Q: 16-11, HT: 28-23, 3Q: 41-32.
Australia have all but locked away the Constellation Cup for another year.
The Netball World Cup champions again showed their class in a clinical 55-46 win over the Silver Ferns in Sunday’s second test in Brisbane.
It means the Diamonds are right where they want to be, leading 2-0 with a 19-goal advantage, as the series shifts to New Zealand.
The third match is in Invercargill on Thursday before the final clash in Auckland next Monday.
Star goal shoot Grace Nweke made her much anticipated return to the court after suffering a tournament-ending knee injury in the third game of the World Cup.
Nweke, who was on a minutes restriction, played 30 minutes, being used in the second and fourth quarters.
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Australian captain Liz Watson had a strong game in Brisbane against the Silver Ferns.
When she was out there, New Zealand looked their most threatening and were able to move the ball swiftly on attack.
Australia’s defenders have had trouble containing Nweke in the past and in her limited time on court, she was again a handful.
She finished with 21 goals from 24 attempts, also pulling in three rebounds, in an encouraging return.
New Zealand looked the most dangerous they have all series in the second quarter with Nweke’s introduction. They were able to go goal for goal with Australia and coach Dame Noeline Taurua will surely be tempted to start her in Invercargill.
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Silver Ferns captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio tries to find a way through tough defence from Australia's Jo Weston.
After opening the series with a 50-40 win in Melbourne, Australia delivered another dominant display.
The world champions led 16-11 after the first quarter and held the same five-goal margin at halftime.
With Nweke off the court in the third quarter, the Diamonds started to pull away from the Ferns on the scoreboard, taking a 41-32 advantage into the final term.
Australia are the best team in world netball for a reason and again demonstrated why in Brisbane.
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New Zealand’s Mila Reuelu-Buchanan looks to spark the attack in Brisbane.
They weren’t quite at the absolute peak of their powers, but still did enough to control the contest, never really looking in trouble.
Goal shoot Cara Koenen had a perfect shooting performance, converting all 33 of her attempts.
The Diamonds converted 55 of their 60 attempts for the game with goal attack Kiera Austin (21 fom 26) also not afraid to turn and shoot.
Circle defenders Courtney Bruce and Jo Weston weren’t quite as destructive as they were in the first test, but still had a major impact, getting the better of the Ferns’ shooters.
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Australia’s Kiera Austin slots a goal in Sunday’s second test win.
For Taurua’s side, they have plenty to stew over as they head back to New Zealand.
While this was a slight improvement from Melbourne, the same issues again hurt them.
Defensively, the Ferns continued to struggle to pick up regular turnover ball, which is going to make it tough to beat a side like Australia.
Australia were able to bring the ball through court smoothly, showing quick ball speed and slick attacking connections.
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Karin Burger got the start at goal defence in the second test for the Ferns.
On attack, the Ferns again found it difficult to hit the circle edge when Nweke wasn’t on court – having to rattle off plenty of passes.
There were too many silly mistakes too, including several offensive contact calls in the shooting end. Commit those kinds of basic errors against the world champions and it’s going to be difficult to beat them.
The Ferns typically perform well against Australia at home, winning both Constellation Cup matches in New Zealand last October.
They hadn’t beaten Australia away from home since October 2019 and any chance of that streak ending on Sunday diminished in the third quarter.
This was the Ferns’ sixth straight loss to Australia, dating back to last year’s Constellation Cup.
With four days’ turnaround, Taurua's side don’t have long to regroup.
Ensuring they come out firing from the opening whistle in Invercargill will be pivotal. Having arguably their best player, Nweke, at goal shoot, would certainly be a help.
