Netball: Old rivalry about to be revived

One of netball's great rivalries resumes in Wellington tonight when the Silver Ferns take the court against Australia in the first match of a three-test series.

The world and Commonwealth Games champion Silver Ferns are fighting to regain the upper hand after a shock 38-48 loss to Australia when the two teams last met in July.

The Australians, without a win on New Zealand soil for almost exactly five years, are desperate to maintain momentum and win back the world title they view as rightfully theirs.

Nothing better sums up the fight for netball supremacy than the on-going battle of wills between New Zealand goal keep Vilimaina Davu and Australian shooter Sharelle McMahon.

Both players are long-standing fixtures in their respective teams, McMahon since 1998 and Davu since 2000. Both are fiercely competitive, and their clashes have seen bodies left strewn around the court, occasionally even their own. And both roar with laughter when asked about their rivalry.

"All the New Zealand defenders are tough, but I really love playing against Vili," McMahon, 29, told NZPA.

"We're both really fierce competitiors, out there doing everything possible to get the ball. But the good thing is what goes on on-court, stays on-court -- she's a great girl off the court."

For her part Davu, also 29, always relishes the chance to test herself against one of the best.

"It's always good to come up against Sharelle -- she's a great athlete. It's exciting playing against her because it's always competitive, always full on," Davu said yesterday. "It's great having that sort of rivalry on court."

The Australians, more comfortable with a one-on-one marking, have been spending a lot of time analysing the New Zealand zone defence, and "the penny seems to have dropped", McMahon said.

"We've certainly been working very hard on finding space within New Zealand's defence. We've been trying to work the ball short and sharp, but sometimes the space opens up longer, and it's just a matter of recognising that when it happens."

New Zealand coach Ruth Aitken was non-committal yesterday when it came to discussing the Silver Ferns' through-court and in-circle defence, making the point that perhaps a mix of the two defensive styles could be the answer.

"I'd certainly like to see us able to do both zone and man-on-man defence well. We have to make sure that our footwork is very good and that we do mix it up. Sometimes we hopefully restrict their running path and sometimes we look to go for that ball in space.

"We still do sides - we don't play the complete zone all the time. Whichever we do, the intention is not to chase the ball."

Despite losing defender Casey Williams two days ago to a training injury, Aitken said the Silver Ferns were spoiled for choice when it came to picking a defensive line-up from the in-form quartet of Davu, Leana de Bruin, Joline Henry and Anna Scarlett.

"The evenness of our defensive line always causes us a lot of angst because all four of our defenders are performing very well. Now it's down to how we mix that around, and what lines we run, that's most challenging."

Getting the defensive mix right may important, but Silver Ferns captain Adine Wilson made it quite clear that a solid defence is the responsibility of the whole team.

"If we lose the ball, or a shot misses, we need to slow things down and help our defence out. If we give them that time to set up, it means they do have those opportunities to come out for the intercept," she told NZPA after yesterday's final training run.

"If we let Australia spin the ball through the court, that's going to make things really hard."

SQUADS

New Zealand: Tania Dalton, Vilimaina Davu, Leana de Bruin, Temepara George (vice captain), Joline Henry, Laura Langman, Julie Seymour, Anna Scarlett, Maria Tutaia, Irene van Dyk, Debbie White, Adine Wilson (captain). Coach: Ruth Aitken.

Australia: Bianca Chatfield, Catherine Cox, Liz Ellis (co-captain), Natasha Choklijat, Mo'onia Gerrard, Selina Gilsenan, Kristen Heinrich, Sharelle McMahon (co-captain), Susan Pratley, Laura von Bertouch, Natalie von Bertouch, Julie Prendergast. Coach: Norma Plummer.

- NZPA