New Zealand posted a defiant 83-34 victory against Wales on Monday against the grim backdrop that they will be without shooter Grace Nweke for the rest of the tournament. The 21-year-old was ruled out before the game with an injury.
A key pillar in the Silver Ferns’ title defence, doubts over Nweke’s fitness had circled after she gingerly limped off the court during New Zealand’s 80-19 win over Singapore on Sunday. News then followed that Nweke would sit out the game against Wales before a statement confirmed she had sustained a partial tear in her patella tendon, ending her tournament.
Stepping into her stead will be reserve shooter Tiana Metuarau, who hit the court for her first World Cup minutes during the third quarter against Wales once the hooting partnership of Ameliaranne Ekenasio and Maia Wilson had been given time to consolidate.
With the Ferns 54-20 up after a barnstorming first half, Metuarua picked up where the others left off. Flashing her playmaking abilities she finished with 10 feeds and four goals from five attempts. The Ferns combined for 19 gains keeping Wales to single digits in three of the four quarters. If there was one message to be taken from the game it was beware the wounded Kiwi.
Their head coach, Noeline Taura, said the team would be able to overcome the loss of Nweke as they defend the title won in Liverpool in 2019. “I don’t believe it is a blow [to title aspriations],” she said. “If anything it’s forced the issue to start to consolidate faster. When you look at the numbers Maia and Meels [Ekenasion], it’s probably the best half that we’ve had.
“What we’ve always known is that we can’t rely on one person. We’ve got to make sure we have players that can play multiple positions but also players that can do their own job.
“I’m a bit of a spiritual person. Sometimes I think the pathway has been set. It’s up to us to decide which path we want to take and in the event of, whether we win or lose, we’re proud of what we do. That’s always been our mantra. Things like this galvanises teams so we’re just putting our head down working and seeing what happens.”
As the Ferns navigated their post-Nweke world,Australia’s Diamonds cracked on with their riotous run, beating Scotland 77-37. The fourth game in four days called for a fourth starting combination as the Diamonds coach, Stacey Marinkovich, quietly went about her own game of tournament chess.
A tight turnaround between Australia’s domestic league ending and the World Cup start, resting legs and solidifying combinations have all been given as reasons for switching things around, but also it all is undoubtedly a strategy of keeping the opposition on the court, and those watching off it, guessing.
The Diamonds’ new arrangement maintained their usual sparkle. A statement 21-9 opener, followed by a 22-8 second quarter, showed no leniency to their opponents who were on the court 15 hours before against England. The injection of shooter Emma Barrie after half-time, as it had against the Roses, had an immediate effect with Scotland able to go goal-for-goal with Australia for most of the 15.
But the Diamonds found their feet again in the fourth, powered by mid-courter Jamie-Lee Price, who did a mountain of work in attack and defence for her second most valued player award of the tournament.
“We started really well,” Marinkovich said “It’s getting to that point where you’re really looking for growth and execution but you’ve also got to celebrate the wins. We’ve had some big scoring margins and we’ve rotated. We’ve used the variety and the depth that we’ve got and people are getting out of there and performing.”
Marinkovich expressed her regret at Nweke’s injury, but underlined the fact the holders are serious contenders: “I know Noeline would have planned A to Z, as we do. You have to select and make sure you’ve got all bases covered so we are gutted for Grace. It’s really tough, particularly in the World Cup, but I also know New Zealand is a classy outfit and I don’t think that allows anyone to take their foot off the pedal.”
England sail past Tonga
“Great energy” was the key ingredient in England’s 72-46 victory against the World Cup debutants Tonga according to Jess Thirlby, as the Roses clinched their first win in the tournament’s crossover stage. “The bar’s gone up but I think our best today is the best we’ve seen from us,” the England coach said after the Roses extended their unbeaten run to four games in Cape Town.
Following the pattern that has emerged from the Roses’ previous pool games, the opening frame was hard-fought. Early intercepts by Funmi Fadoju and Imogen Allison gave the Roses a 19-13 lead.
The second quarter was much more one-sided with Fadoju and Allison continuing in full flight even as the former Silver Ferns player Cat Tuivaiti was injected into the game to buoy Tonga. Their impact, plus Helen Housby and Eleanor Cardwell swapping shooter bibs, helped the Roses stamp their authority – keeping their opponents to a single-digit score at the close of the half.
Urged on by a chorus of Tongan voices, the Tala returned from the break inspired. Making the most of England adjusting to a new rotation from the bench, Tonga took the Roses to task, going goal-for-goal in stages. Hulita Veve seemed to have the number of Jade Clarke, picking up two intercepts as Tonga matched England for gains.
Undeterred by the testing 16-14 quarter, Thirlby gave the full 12 squad a turn on court. Through Layla Guscoth’s four gains, England found the burners they needed to close out the win. There will be no rest for the Roses as they go again for their fifth game in five days against Fiji.
