Louisa Wall: Our netballers show girls can do anything

COMMENT

I am still applauding the Silver Ferns' 3-0 victory over the Aussies.

The pressure was on (as world champions), and the Silver Ferns withstood the great expectation of a hungry public and won.

It was good to the resolve and belief after the world championships success of 2003 continuing.

Too often in the past the Silver Ferns have not won in such circumstances, and psychologically I hope this experience is repeated as we build towards the Commonwealth Games.

To add gold to the trophy cabinet is a reality we control, and the team and public now know they can do it repeatedly.

With the level of support and investment they receive from the public and sponsors, this is not too much to ask, and if we continue to demand, then hopefully they will continue to supply.

That is the theory anyway.

It was a great series victory and finale for Sheryl Wells, manager of the Silver Ferns for the past 12 years - what a fabulous innings. I acknowledge her contribution to the Silver Ferns' success.

A solid team is often anchored by a sound code that provides a constant and stable environment which the team can prepare for, and this preparation requires a sound administration and coaching staff to manage those controllable factors.

Wells was the epitome of stability, and she will be missed.

So, we play the Aussies again in November, without skipper Anna Rowberry, who is to have knee surgery, and potentially without Belinda Colling, who will by then live in Scotland.

Colling is the obvious stand-in/new skipper. With her experience both on and off the court as a previous Silver Ferns captain (and Canterbury Flames captain), Colling's talent and expertise must be used.

She has now achieved a level of consistency and excellence that is a wonderful indicator of player development and investment (as has Justin Marshall, just quietly), and a continued investment via selection must be maintained.

The "new" Netball New Zealand squad will be announced at the end of the national championships, and although Colling will miss these, it is not compulsory for players to compete, so she should be selected in the squad and be eligible for selection to play for the Silver Ferns in November.

If selections are based on the whole year's events - for example the National Bank Cup, tours, squad camps and national championships - the merit of selecting Colling must been seen by all. Given netball is not fully professional there are always obvious exceptions to any rule.

The series in November will be tough.

The Aussies on home soil will surely be "scrubbers" (as we were purported to be) and their public is equally as expectant as ours. I remember those Aussie crowds.

They loved Tania Cox and she was singled out for special treatment. Vili Davu will no doubt fill this special role, and in fact it is a wonderful compliment.

Just as they treated Richard Hadlee (another hero; remember those chants), this energy can be used to uplift the team if you are prepared for it.

Hopefully the sports psychologists will help the Silver Ferns develop techniques so they can channel this energy and use it to motivate, not distract.

Therefore, bodies will fly and collide. This is the nature of sport at its rawest.

To anticipate anything else is not a critique of skill, but rather a quaint and retrospective attitude that speaks volumes of the evolution of women in society. Girls can (and will) do anything. Louisa Wall was a New Zealand netball representative from 1989-1992 and rugby representative from 1994 to 2000.