Netball: Aussies start to stir it up

By Richard Boock

CHRISTCHURCH - Beware of chuckling Australian netball coaches bearing grins from ear-to-ear.

Particularly so, when they've just been asked to consider the prospects of a likely New Zealand-Jamaica semifinal at the world championships, leaving Australia to face either South Africa or England in the other showdown.

Speaking just before New Zealand cleaned out Barbados 71-35 yesterday, Australian coach Jill McIntosh predicted the Silver Ferns would face an epic challenge should a semifinal match-up against Jamaica eventuate, and wondered whether being in the weaker pool group would count against them.

The Jamaicans need to beat England today to set up the clash, but McIntosh believed they would do that, and then present a difficult obstacle for the New Zealanders on Friday night.

"I look forward to watching that match," McIntosh said after her side had overwhelmed the United States 91-26. "Jamaica have some very good athletes, an excellent spearhead in Elaine Davis, and some other great players such as Connie Francis and Oberon Pitterson-Dunn.

"They've got everything there they need, and if they choose to use it on the night, look out."

McIntosh said if New Zealand and Australia did meet in the final, she was pleased her side was forced to progress through the tougher group, and singled out the massive tussle against Jamaica as a potential watershed in her team's campaign.

However, Silver Ferns' coach Yvonne Willering played down any suggestion her side would head into the play-offs underdone, pointing out that they had to meet the good teams at some stage, and that they were prepared for that.

"We're happy to have a progressive build-up," she said. "It's just a matter of whether you play them sooner or later and as far as I'm concerned it's a non-issue."

Willering was again left feeling relatively happy after her side scooted to another big win, although she did concede concerns about the accuracy of the shooters (despite an improvement), and the final quarter of the match, when New Zealand eked out a miserable 15-12 advantage.

"We do want improvement," she said of New Zealand's modest performance in the goal-shooting circle during the tournament. "It's something within the players themselves. It's confidence, it's a matter sometimes of just getting on with it; of not dwelling on it."

New Zealand quickly took command against Barbados, blasting out to a 21-6 lead at the first-quarter break and extending it to 38-12 at half-time before easing off in the second half, taking the third quarter 18-11 and the last 15 minutes by only three.

For all Jamaica's reputation, the title-contenders were forced to mount a desperate bid to keep Fiji at bay yesterday after the highly impressive last seeds pushed them throughout the match, trailing by just seven goals at half and three-quarter time before losing touch.

Jamaica persevered to win 69-51, and will now square off against England, who were untroubled last night in accounting for Samoa 63-44.

The Cook Islands continued to astonish, hammering Northern Ireland 91-32 in the first match of the day, while South Africa dealt to Canada 84-26, Singapore edged out Malawi 65-57, and Trinidad and Tobago - who play New Zealand today - over-ran the Welsh 70-33.

Main draw Day 8

USA v Fiji 8.45 am; Barbados v Northern Ireland 10.30 am; Samoa v Singapore 12.15 pm; Canada v Wales 12.45 pm; England v Jamaica 2 pm; South Africa v Cook Islands 3.45 pm; Australia v Malawi 5.30 pm NZ v Trinidad and Tobago 7.30 pm