The Australian Diamonds and NSW Swifts co-captain Paige Hadley have asserted their dominance on the world stage with a clean sweep at the Netball Nations Cup.
There was a sense of déjà vu with the final of the Netball Nations Cup coming down to Australia vs England as it was at the World Cup not long ago. Once again, the Diamonds were able to finish business with the green and gold surging across the court to win by 20 goals.
The Diamonds started the game strongly with the shooting combination of Sophie Garbin and Sophie Dwyer moving smoothly in attack. In defence the Diamonds were firing on all cylinders putting pressure on England to maintain possession.
The Australians held a four-goal lead at the end of the first quarter but the Roses lifted in intensity in the second. As the pressure mounted errors started to slip into the match but the Diamonds put their foot down to lead by 10 at halftime.
Silky connections through the Diamonds midcourt and pinpoint feeds enabled the Aussies to power through the third despite the Roses continuing to push. Relentless in attack and defence the Diamonds made the most of their opportunities to extend the lead to 18 goals at the final break.
Working for each other the Diamonds didn’t slow in the final quarter, upping the ante despite head coach Stacey Marinkovich pulling the trigger on a slew of changes.
The ball moved with precision from one end of the court to the other with the Diamonds withstanding the heat from the Roses. The Diamonds completed a strong four-quarter performance to win 69 to 49 with Garbin named the Player of the Match and Hadley the Player of the Series.
Swifts defender Sarah Klau also brought up her 50th Test for the Diamonds in the third game against Uganda.
