Huddled together in a room behind enemy lines each of the England netball team was handed a piece of paper.
On it was a single word and one by one they were asked to stand up and pin theirs on the wall. Until two sentences were formed.
“‘If not now, when? If not you, who?’ Yeah, those were the questions our captain asked,” said Eboni Usoru-Brown. “It gives me chills just thinking about it.”
An hour later England beat Australia with the game’s final shot. Australia, the sport’s superpower. Australia the host nation. Australia who had reached every final in Commonwealth Games history.
For a team called the Diamonds, on the basis presumably that diamonds are forever, losing to a Pom side in its first final did not go down well.
Four years on home advantage has switched and Usoru-Brown, who plays her club netball in Australia, is well aware what is coming England’s way.
“The Aussies are so hungry and haven’t they let me know about it!” said the Solihull-born defender.
“They were constantly saying to me ‘when we come home with gold..’. Always when, never if.
“But, do you know what, I think there’s a sense of fear from the Australians because in recent years we’ve had more wins against them than losses.
“We’re that niggly thorn in their side that they can’t quite remove. And we’re coming in at our strongest, with a lot of confidence. We are hungry.”
Life has changed for the Asics athlete since that day on the Gold Coast. No longer known by her maiden name Beckford-Chambers, she is married and a mum to Savannah, who she gave birth to during the pandemic.
“One of the saddest things for me was that my grandmother passed away without actually getting to meet her grand-daughter due to the restrictions,” she said. “So going into these Games I’m playing for her.”
This time will feel different in other ways too, not least the absence of the Neville factor.
Four years ago Tracey Neville was head coach and driving force behind the Gold Coast triumph, with older brother Gary chief cheerleader from afar.
“Yeeessssssssss!!! The most amazing thing I’ve ever seen” he tweeted seconds after Helen Housby’s last-gasp winner silenced the Aussie crowd.
“If you watch the video of that final you will see the Australians all very stiff and walking out on court at the start,” said Usoru-Brown. “Then you see us just so excited to be there.
“It reminds me of that little girl sitting in the stands at Wembley when I first saw England play against Australia, wanting to wear a red dress, wanting to become one of the Roses.
“To get that opportunity and actually win gold was the best feeling ever. This is a different journey, a different story, but the goal remains the same.”
ASICS sponsors England Netball star Eboni Usoro-Brown and is proudly supporting her at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham
