By RICHARD BOOCK
Australian coach Jill McIntosh paid tribute to New Zealand's through-court defence after her side's eleven-goal loss in the second netball test in Invercargill last night.
The Silver Ferns' series-squaring win was built on tireless defence from goal-shot to goal-keep, which not only stopped Australia counter-attacking, but also gave
the hosts plenty of ball.
McIntosh said that as well as Irene van Dyk and Donna Loffhagen played in the New Zealand shooting circle, it was the lack of space through the court that caused the most problems for her side, who struggled to settle into any cohesive combination.
"The Ferns' defence was a lot stronger right through the court," she said. "They tightened up a lot from last weekend and I think that, more than anything else, caused problems for our side."
As for her own much-vaunted defence, she said it was hard for anyone to stop van Dyk when the feeders executed the overhead pass so accurately, and that her side had tried hard to thwart the pass.
"We tried - God, we tried everything - but Irene has a clear height advantage over Liz [Ellis] and when they get that lob pass just right, it's very difficult to stop."
New Zealand captain Bernice Mene said the Ferns were over the moon to have levelled the series and would enjoy the night, but cautioned that it was important not to get too carried away with the all-important third test looming.
"We know they'll come after us in Christchurch and that we'll have to improve to repeat this result and win the series."
Mene said the Ferns played the game last night that they had hoped to play in the series opener, and that composure had played a vital part in their turnaround.
