KEY POINTS:
Just how much the Silver Ferns have learned from a tumultuous series against England will become more evident when they take on Australia in a two-test series there next week.
Just three days after being dealt a harsh reality check with a shock loss to England, the Ferns
wrapped up a bizarre series in trouncing England by 39 goals to match their efforts in the opening test.
The Silver Ferns claimed the Taini Jamieson trophy with a 2-1 series win. But it was not so much the silverware they were interested in.
After opening the series with a stunning 65-26 demolition of England last week, the Ferns slumped to a two-goal loss to the visitors in the second test in Dunedin.
The Ferns camp were swamped with a tidal wave of criticism after the inexplicable loss and were desperate to make amends in the weekend's decider.
They responded with another ruthless display in Palmerston North, flogging the visitors 61-22.
But New Zealand's clinical performances in the opening and closing tests were marred by their self-implosion in the middle, which raises serious concerns over the side's consistency heading in to the Australian series, beginning in Melbourne on Sunday.
Although the Ferns showed a great deal of resilience to overcome the huge pressure they were under, they should never have put themselves under such pressure in the first place.
They demonstrated they have the potential to be 40 goals better than the English, so how did New Zealand manage to lose that second test?
Clearly they under-estimated England's fighting qualities, with New Zealand coach Ruth Aitken admitting complacency was a factor.
"I think it shows that everyone is human and while we talked about not being complacent, I think if we looked in the mirror at the end - and that's coaches as well - we must have been [complacent] to put out that sort of performance."
It was a harsh lesson to learn and the Silver Ferns aren't likely to make that mistake again in a hurry.
So the real concern for Aitken is that when the Ferns got bogged down in the Dunedin test, they were unable to dig themselves out of it. The Kiwi coach said the focus for her team now heading into next week's series was learning how to fight back.
"That middle one was obviously hugely disappointing ... What we have to learn and look at is how to turn it around in a game so that we don't finish so disappointed really," said Aitken.
Of the five tests played at home this season, New Zealand's three wins - one against Australia, two against England - have all been by convincing margins. Yet when the two sides pushed New Zealand close, the Silver Ferns were unable to grind out a win.
Aitken said while they managed to dominate England from the outset in the final test, the opposition weren't always going to allow it and her side needed to learn to steadfastly stick to their game plan.
Despite copping much criticism for opting to start with a new-look attacking line-up in Wednesday's second test, Aitken said she still hoped to test further combinations in Australia.
With such a short international season, there were limited opportunities to develop new lines before the 2010 Commonwealth Games, she said.
Aitken may have no choice but to make changes, with a question mark hovering over captain Julie Seymour's fitness after the veteran midcourter withdrew from Saturday's decider with an achilles injury.
The Ferns leave for Melbourne on Thursday.
