Netball: 'Knackered' Ferns hope for better

It was not the statement the Silver Ferns were hoping to make heading into a Commonwealth Games year.

The New Zealand side only just survived a final quarter meltdown against England in yesterday's one-off test in Bath, before emerging 65-59 winners after two periods of overtime.

But it was a position they should have never been in.

Having led by as many as nine goals in the second quarter and eight in the third, the Ferns were extremely disappointed to allow the English side to fight their way back and level the score at the end of regulation time.

In the lead-up to the match, Ferns' coach Ruth Aitken emphasised the importance of winning and winning well against England, given it will be the last time the two sides meet before next year's Games in New Dehli.

While the Ferns were unable to produce the convincing performance they were hoping for, there were still enough positives to come from the game to keep New Zealand coach Ruth Aitken happy ... for now.

Aitken said after a shaky fourth quarter, she was delighted with the resolve and composure her side showed in the overtime stages.

"I think we were very lucky that we've got real faith in the conditioning the players have done and the ability of that experienced group to pull themselves out of a hole," said Aitken.

"I said to them, 'Those people who have dug themselves a hole have to dig themselves out and I certainly believed they could'.

"Looking at their faces waiting to go back out there, I knew that they felt very pleased that they had a second chance and they were going to make it right." But after the scare against the English, Aitken will be demanding a much more complete performance against Jamaica in their two remaining tests this year.

"We were far too inconsistent," Aitken said of her side's performance yesterday.

"But the reality was when push came to shove the players could take a step up and really execute the game plan effectively.

"So that was very encouraging, but we've got a long way to go and we know the other countries will be working hard too, so we've got to work harder and smarter."

Following yesterday's test in Bath the Ferns jumped straight on a coach to London, where they bedded down for the night before catching their flight to the Caribbean.

The Ferns arrive in Kingston today and will have four days to prepare for their opening match on Wednesday.

The demanding travel schedule after the exhausting overtime match will no doubt add to the already high fatigue levels in the camp.

Aitken admits her players are feeling "pretty knackered" as they near the end of an extremely long season.

"It is going to be a long day and certainly bodies are already pretty fatigued now.

"They will be feeling it. But they won't be as fatigued as they would have been if we'd lost."

THE HOME STRETCH

Silver Ferns v Jamaica
* October 21, 12.30pm, Kingston
* October 23, 12.30pm, Kingston