Silver Ferns 61
England 58
Cool heads under pressure have seen the Silver Ferns close out a 61-58 win over the England Roses in London to go 1-nil up in their three-match series.
Midcourter Kate Heffernan produced a defensive masterclass, picking up six deflections and two intercepts. The wing defence also made some eye-catching feeds into the circle, continuing in the same vein of form she built against Australia and Scotland.
England rode the support of a raucous Copper Box Arena crowd with a 17-14 third-quarter , but failed to sustain their edge and make the most of their opportunities.
Ferns shooter Grace Nweke finished with 53 goals at 93% accuracy.
The sides were clearly evenly matched. However, the Silver Ferns were defensively more accurate, and the midcourt controlled the pace of the contest late to secure the tight win.
Coach Yvette McCausland-Durie told Sky Sport it was a great game, full of everything.
“I think we had opportunities to settle a lot earlier and a lot of ball. But the defence of England - they really put pressure on you in terms of where that placement opportunity is. Really pleased to get the win.”
Heffernan said England always brings intensity.
“We did well to weather the storm a little bit and be able to close it out at the end because the lead was going back and forth. To be able to win a game like that is really encouraging for the future.”
It took well over a minute for Roses goal attack Helen Housby to score the opening goal, with both sides making early mistakes.
An offensive contact call on Nweke gave England the initial advantage. The Roses’ defensive duo of Funmi Fadoju and Jaz Brown picked several turnovers off Nweke and Kiwi goal attack Georgia Heffernan in the first stanza.
However, England failed to capitalise on their hard-won possession. Some lightning-fast ball from centre Maddy Gordon into Nweke saw the Ferns finish the opening quarter up 15-14.
After the break, skipper Karin Burger managed to roll a bounce pass between the legs of her opposite to help put the Ferns up by three goals. However, Gordon uncharacteristically had a communication breakdown with Georgia Heffernan, floating an easy intercept to Fadoju.
Gordon and wing defence Kate Heffernan’s lob passes to Nweke continued to work a treat. The Ferns’ ability to score quickly off their centre pass kept pressure on England to nail their own, though Housby was unshakeable from wide in the circle.
Kate Heffernan then brilliantly picked off two intercepts, giving New Zealand a 33-30 halftime lead.
England started the third quarter strongly, drawing level after Nweke put a foot out of bounds.
A communication breakdown between Gordon and Nweke saw England surge into a two-goal lead; the two players looking at each other in confusion after Nweke dropped it in the circle.
Amelia Walmsley joined the contest at goal attack and looked composed, calmly slotting goals when required and lobbing a nice feed into Nweke from range.
Another Kate Heffernan tip-on saw the Ferns pull the scoreline back once again. A tense third stanza finished with the scoreline locked at 47-47.
The Roses missed a shot early in the final quarter, and Kate Heffernan snatched yet another deflection.
The addition of Eleanor Cardwell in the goal shoot bib seemed to boost the Roses and helped the crowd find their voice. Cardwell nailed her first three goals and brought the hosts back to within one.
The New Zealand midcourt of Heffernan, Poi and Gordon showed their experience by slowing play down and sapping some of the energy out of the contest. Both Nweke and Walmsley were cool under pressure, and New Zealand extended their lead to three once more.
The Silver Ferns expertly wound down the clock, with all areas of the court making valuable contributions, to win the final quarter 14-11.
It meant the side remained unbeaten on their Northern Tour, after two wins over Scotland.
Nathan Limm has been a journalist with Newstalk ZB and the NZ Herald since 2020. He covered the Netball World Cup in Cape Town in 2023, hosts The Big League Podcast and commentates rugby and netball for Gold Sport.