The Silver Ferns are posing a threat to Australia’s major title success after producing a 14-goal triumph in the first game of the Constellation Cup.
Australia is the current holder of all major international titles but have not won on New Zealand soil in 1328 days.
The Diamonds have only lost the Constellation Cup twice in the serie’s history, with their latest defeat the worst result recorded by the team in the last decade.
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Australia trailed by one at the end of the first quarter but quickly lost momentum and coach Stacey Marinkovich felt forced to make 11 changes before the final quarter.
Former Diamond Nat Medhurst described the Aussies’ performance as showcasing signs of “disconnect” and “panic” in attack as the Kiwis increased a seven-point lead to 10.
“Someone in that front line for the Diamonds needs to start taking some leadership and really settle that front line for them,” she said in commentary on Fox Netball.
New Zealand capitalised on the Diamonds’ errors to take command over the game, with the remarkable accuracy of Grace Nweke proving a costly challenge for the Aussies.
Grace Nweke of New Zealand and Courtney Bruce of Australia compete for the ball. Getty
Nweke was the top goal scorer in the match with 50 goals from 53 attempts, while Cara Koenen led the scoring for the Aussies with 20.
Australian captain Liz Watson expressed her disappointment post-match.
“They obviously played extremely well and we didn’t,” she told Fox Netball.
“Lots to learn from that game, hopefully a better performance next time.
“In attack I think we need to be stronger and take on the physicality, not fall over as much.”
Australia have three more chances to retain the Constellation Cup title, with the 2024 series the first to apply the series decider timer.
Previous series have seen the match results tied in the final clash, with teams awarded the title based on points differential.
But the series decider time will mean that if the battle is tied at the conclusion of the fourth match, scores are wiped to zero and play resumes for an additional 14 minutes.
The next game in the Test series will take place in Auckland on Wednesday before the Diamonds host the Ferns in Perth and Melbourne.