Netball: Stopping Fowler tall order for Ferns

Jhaniele Fowler. Photo / Getty Images

The Silver Ferns win over Jamaica yesterday prompted one harrowing thought - how will they stop Jhaniele Fowler in July?

Fowler could be a Glasgow Commonwealth Games wildcard for the Sunshine Girls, prompting some shock results at a major tournament in the vein of Irene van Dyk in 1995 (for South Africa) or Caitlin Bassett in Singapore three years ago.

The Jamaican is steadily developing into one of the sport's greatest weapons. Other shooters have their key attributes - van Dyk is incredible under pressure, Bassett is the most efficient and Maria Tutaia has the purest shot - but Fowler is becoming the hardest to combat.

As a unit, the Ferns defended superbly yesterday, with Katrina Grant and Leana de Bruin highly effective. Fowler almost singlehandedly kept her team in the hunt. She took Jamaica to the brink of a famous upset (they trailed by only three midway through the final quarter) despite the variable quality of feeding from her team-mates.

At 1.98m, she has an advantage, and at times close to the posts scoring a goal looks effortless.

But Fowler's movement and hold have also improved exponentially since she first appeared at the 2011 world championships, thanks largely to her ANZ Championship experience. She was the league MVP in her debut season last year with the Southern Steel, rewriting all kinds of scoring records, and now even overshadows her famous team-mate Romelda Aiken.

"She has improved significantly - she is almost a different player [since 2011]," Ferns coach Wai Taumaunu told the Herald on Sunday. "It's also because Jamaica's feeding has improved; in the past they couldn't feed her from deep. She is a huge threat but I was pleased with our circle defence."

It seems ominous that Fowler will have another ANZ Championship season under her belt before the two teams meet in their final pool match at the Commonwealth Games.

"She will improve but our defenders will all have at least another two chances to face her," says Taumaunu. "They'll learn a lot."

Meanwhile, Taumaunu is wary of underestimating England ahead of their match on Tuesday morning (NZT). The English swept Australia 3-0 last year and have been bolstered by the return of defender Geva Mentor, after almost two years away from the international environment.

"They are a tough, tough side," says Taumaunu, "and they are getting better all the time."

There is no reason for complacency in the Ferns camp, after a ragged display against the Sunshine Girls yesterday. Moments of true inspiration were few and the Ferns struggled with their feeding from circle edge. Handling by both sides was poor, with the Ferns appearing to struggle with the new match ball, after having only one day to practise.

Overall Taumaunu was pleased after employing the "risky strategy" of changing almost the whole attacking line at halftime. Cathrine Latu, in her first outing against the Caribbean nation, added some impetus from the bench while Shannon Francois is still performing a notch ahead of incumbent Camilla Lees.

Taumaunu is likely to continue her rotation strategy against England, in what will be the Ferns' last official test match before the Glasgow Games.

"We are here to get people on the court and that is what we will continue to do," says Taumaunu. "That's our strategy and it's up to everyone to perform."

New Zealand 52 Jamaica 46. Quarter breakdown: 14-9, 24-18, 38-32, 52-46.