Commonwealth Games: Silver Ferns to play Jamaica in gold medal match after Australia knocked out
Jamaica are slightly less potent on attack at this event without prolific shooter Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard, who gave birth a few months ago.
But the hugely experienced Romelda Aiken-George anchored the Sunshine Girls at goal shoot, while Jamaica’s world-class defensive line came to life.
The Australian players looked shell-shocked as they walked off the court.
Sunday night’s gold medal match will be the Silver Ferns’ first final of a pinnacle event since winning the 2019 Netball World Cup.
A gold medal for the Silver Ferns would be the ultimate response to what’s been one of the most difficult periods for the sport in New Zealand.
The Silver Ferns are playing against the backdrop of the potential demise of the ANZ Premiership. With the league running at a deficit of $3.7 million this season, its future is under serious threat and Netball NZ can’t guarantee that there will be an elite domestic competition next year.
The other storyline at this event is that when Dame Noeline Taurua sat on the coaching bench for the Silver Ferns’ opening match against Scotland, it was her first time in charge since October 2024.
Last September, one of the most damaging periods for the sport was set in motion when Taurua was suspended due to concerns raised from players about the high performance environment.
Taurua was eventually reinstated as head coach, but only got her hands on the team three weeks before the start of the Commonwealth Games when they came together for a camp.
Captain Karin Burger, who stood in as interim captain in the immediate aftermath of the Taurua suspension, said the team’s resilience came through in their win over England.
“We’ve been working really hard for this, we’ve been through some ups and downs so to be able to be in this position and know we’re prepping for gold is a really good feeling,” Burger said.
“England had their crowd backing them but I think the strength of this New Zealand side is playing for and with each other on the court and not letting the outside noise infiltrate the way we play. Our focus over the last couple of days has to be tight knit.”
Taurua was thrilled they had put themselves in the position to contend for a gold medal.
“It takes a long time to get here not only on court but also the work we’ve done off court. We’ve got to give ourselves a bit of a tick and a pat on the back and to be able to put that performance out there is something of a success already in our minds.
“But it’s always such an honour to play in a grand final, we’re going to give it everything we’ve got, this is what we’ve prepared for.”
Earlier on Saturday, the Silver Ferns confirmed defender Catherine Hall had been ruled out of the Games after rupturing her ACL in the match against Wales on Thursday.
The Silver Ferns are reduced to 11 players, with Kelly Jackson, Karin Burger, and Carys Stythe having to take the load in the defensive end.
Georgia Heffernan, who sustained a minor ankle injury in the same game and missed the final pool match, was able to make the starting line-up at goal attack.
The only change Taurua made was bringing Amelia Walmsley on to replace Heffernan at goal attack for the last few minutes.
The challenge for the Silver Ferns will be to back their performance up a day later.
Despite relying heavily on a starting seven for the knock-out games, Taurua said the players had more in the tank.
“We’ve actually got a few more mileage in our bank, so our strength and conditioning coach is really happy about that, we know that we can run that physically,” Taurua said.
Burger, who was part of the 2019 World Cup winning team, is the only current Fern who has tasted success at a pinnacle event.
She believes the Ferns can go all the way.
“100%, I’ve got full faith in this group, if we play the way we can and stay united the way we can, I think we’re unstoppable,” Burger said.
Jamaica made their first Commonwealth Games final in Birmingham four years ago, where they finished runners-up to Australia. New Zealand and Jamaica have never met each other in the final of the Netball World Cup or Commonwealth Games.
The gold medal match starts at midnight Sunday.