Ferns coach forced to take a punt

Malia Paseka. Photo / Alan Gibson.

"I felt if we didn't take a slightly riskier approach, we weren't going over to [the World Cup] to try and win, we were going over there to play."

It's that quote from Waimarama Taumaunu that sums up the predicament she and her fellow national selectors were facing this week as they set about the daunting task of picking the Silver Ferns squad for next month's World Cup in Sydney.

The Ferns' poor run of results against Australia over the last two seasons - including an 18-goal loss to the Diamonds in last year's Commonwealth Games final - necessitated major changes to the New Zealand side ahead of the World Cup.

Veterans Cathrine Latu, Joline Henry and Liana Leota were today confirmed as the high-profile casualties of those sweeping changes.

The omission of Latu - consistently the most accurate shooter in the ANZ Championship - is perhaps the most controversial move, with Taumaunu opting for uncapped youngster Malia Paseka instead.

There is a whiff of desperation about the shooting selections, but the situation demanded Taumaunu and co take a punt.

The likes of Paseka and fellow rookie shooter Bailey Mes might be largely unproven, but what the selectors felt certain of was that a Latu-Maria Tutaia combination was not going to win the Ferns the World Cup.

Latu's shooting volume over the past couple of seasons and her track record against the Australian defenders, in particular Diamonds skipper Laura Geitz, was a big concern. The 20-year-old Paseka offers more athleticism and versatility.

In Paseka, Mes, Tutaia and Jodi Brown, Taumaunu has four players who can play both shooting positions, making for a much more unpredictable shooting lineup that will keep their rivals guessing.

Like Latu, it was a lack of versatilty that also cost Leota and Henry.

With seven players chasing three spots in the midcourt, the battle for positions was incredibly tight. The writing was on the wall for Leota late last year when she was ousted from the Silver Ferns starting lineup by Grace Rasmussen - a player overlooked for Commonwealth Games selection.

Henry would have been a much tougher call. The uncompromising wing defence has been a rock in the midcourt for more than a decade and has a reputation of stepping up on the big occasions.

But there was no room in the side for both Henry and the athletic Kayla Cullen, who is equally strong at both goal defence and wing defence and is said to have performed exceptionally well at this week's trials.

It is a risky move to dispatch with such experience just over a month out from a major tournament.

But being conservative isn't going to win the Ferns a World Cup when Australia are so far in front.