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At Cape Town International Convention Centre, Cape Town: Silver Ferns 54 (Grace Nweke: 15/16, Ameliaranne Ekenasio: 12/12, Maia Wilson: 10/11, Te Paea Selby Rickit: 17/19) Uganda 44 (Mary Cholhok: 30/38, Irene Eyaru: 3/6, Shadiah Nassanga: 11/13) 1Q: 13-11, HT: 25-21, 3Q: 38-32.
A second half flurry helped the Silver Ferns avoid a Netball World Cup scare against Uganda.
World No 8 Uganda pushed New Zealand hard in their second pool game in Cape Town on Saturday (NZ time), but the Ferns finished strongly to win 54-44.
With the Ferns leading by just four goals at halftime (25-21), Uganda would have sensed they were capable of causing a mighty upset.
The class and superior fitness of the Silver Ferns shown through in the second half, outscoring the She Cranes 29-23 after halftime.
New Zealand opened with an 8-3 start to the final quarter, padding their lead to 11, to finally take control after they had led by six (38-32) at three-quarter time.
After opening their World Cup title defence with a lopsided 76-27 win over Trinidad and Tobago on Friday (NZT), Uganda proved a far tougher test.
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Silver Ferns captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio puts up an attempt against Uganda.
Having worn a silver alternate version of their World Cup Manawarau dress in the Cup opener, the Ferns were back in their traditional black strip against the She Cranes.
The Ferns would have been under no illusion about the challenge of Uganda.
Uganda stuck with the Ferns at last year’s Commonwealth Games before Dame Noeline Taurua’s side prevailed 53-40.
Uganda’s 2.01m goal shoot Mary Cholhok, who has been a standout for the Loughborough Lightning in England, was a frequent problem for the Ferns.
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Uganda goal shoot Mary Cholhok was a handful for the Silver Ferns.
Cholhok did well moving around the goal circle, rather than just standing under the hoop, and kept the Ferns’ circle defenders constantly thinking.
The Silver Ferns were made to work hard defensively on each Uganda centre pass, who were content to move the ball around to get it into Cholhok safely. Cholhok scored 18 of Uganda’s 21 first half goals, unsurprisingly being their dominant shooter.
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New Zealand goal keep Kelly Jury and Uganda goal shoot Mary Cholhok compete for the ball.
A strong finish to the second quarter saw the Ferns take a slim 25-21 lead into halftime, ending the half with a 4-1 burst.
Taurua made just one change to her starting seven from the opener with Whitney Souness getting an opportunity at wing attack over Gina Crampton.
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Uganda’s Irene Eyaru controls the ball against the Silver Ferns.
Maia Wilson was injected into the game in the second quarter for skipper Ameliaranne Ekenasio. Wilson made an immediate impression, landing all five goals in the quarter.
Leading by just four at halftime, Taurua rung the changes, taking off star goal shoot Grace Nweke, bringing on Te Paea Selby-Rickit, defender Jane Watson, and Crampton.
It was a courageous move from Taurua to take Nweke off, given the closeness of the score, but proved a smart decision.
The Ferns finished the third quarter with some of their most consistent play of the game to open up a six goal buffer (38-32) entering the final 15 minutes.
Best on court
Kelly Jury was impressive at the back for the Ferns, winning intercepts and turnover ball – facing the huge challenge of marking up against Cholhok. She was again trialled at wing defence in the fourth quarter and went well.
The big moment
New Zealand clung to a 31-29 lead midway through the third quarter. They capitalised from several Ugandan errors, scoring from the turnover ball to push ahead on the scoreboard and give them a crucial six goal lead entering the final term.
Match rating: 7/10
While it was closer than many Silver Ferns’ supporters would have wanted, this was the evenly fought spectacle the Netball World Cup badly needed early on. Uganda pushed the Ferns all the way, and they’ll only be better for the hit-out.
The big picture
The Ferns complete the first stage preliminaries on Sunday night (9pm start) against the lowest ranked side at the World Cup, 28th ranked Singapore. From there it will be onto the crossover stage, beginning on Monday (NZT), where the tournament starts to officially heat up.
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