Netball: Silver Ferns face more dilemmas

Donna Loffhagen's withdrawal from the Silver Ferns has thrown the spotlight back on the lack of shooting talent in New Zealand.

Loffhagen's exit has left the 16-strong squad with just three shooters - Irene van Dyk, Jodi Te Huna and Angela Mitchell. Not the most encouraging numbers 13 months out from the Commonwealth Games.

While National Bank Cup coaches are always bemoaning the lack of quality shooters, it is familiar territory for national coach Ruth Aitken. Since she began as coach in 2001 she has had plenty of shooting dilemmas to overcome.

With arguably the country's best goal attack, Loffhagen, unavailable for the past two years because of commitments to the Tall Ferns, Aitken then lost Tania Dalton, who blew out her knee in last year's National Bank Cup and then decided to have another baby.

Belinda Colling then announced her pregnancy and subsequent withdrawal from the squad just before last year's return series against Australia.

With Loffhagen unavailable for that series because of study commitments, Aitken was forced to go back to the production line and haul out another goal attack.

Mitchell, who had played a handful of games for the Silver Ferns in 2002, returned to the fray, sharing the goal attack with Te Huna, who made her debut at the 2003 world championships.

While a tentative Mitchell struggled in the opening test, 23-year-old Te Huna made the most of her opportunity. Combining well with van Dyk, Te Huna's confidence grew in every game. With another year of international competition under her belt, she could fill the goal attack void.

But along with Te Huna and Mitchell, talented New Zealand A players Katie Ritchie and Anna Senio are waiting in the wings. They are obviously short on international experience, but Netball New Zealand have made it a priority to expose as many players as possible to international competition.

As a result the New Zealand A team, of which Ritchie and Senio are both members, have international fixtures each year and will square off against England when they tour here in March.

There is also nothing to say Dalton and Colling won't return for the Commonwealth Games.

While the exceptionally gifted Loffhagen would have boosted New Zealand's chances of winning gold in Melbourne, there is still plenty of time to develop another world-beating combination.

Australia are still trying to cement a top shooting combination. The only difference is they have seven shooters - Sharelle McMahon, Catherine Cox, Jane Altschwager, Cynna Neele, Megan Anderson and Kirsten Heinrich - from which to choose.