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None of the England team that beat the Silver Ferns in the semifinals of the World Cup have will make the trip to New Zealand.
England Netball will send what is effectively a B team to New Zealand to play the Silver Ferns in next month’s Taini Jamison Trophy series.
None of the players who helped the Roses reach the final at the recent Netball World Cup have been included in the 14-person squad to travel to New Zealand in September – nor has coach Jess Thirlby.
England Netball said the players and staff who attended the World Cup were taking a “planned break” after naming a vastly-understrength squad featuring as many as seven potential debutantes on Thursday.
Former Silver Fern and England assistant Liana Leota will take temporary charge of a completely new-look team for the three matches in Christchurch, Porirua and Hamilton in Thirlby’s absence.
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Former Australia coach Lisa Alexander believes there needs to be changes at both domestic and international level to help the Silver Ferns rise again.
England beat the Silver Ferns in the semifinals of the World Cup but fell to Australia in the decider.
“This series presents a brilliant opportunity for new, returning and current Roses and Future Roses athletes to get much-needed exposure to international competition soon after our World Cup campaign,” Thirlby explained.
“It’s important that we keep up the momentum in the short term but with the longer-term ambition of achieving further success in the next cycle with the World Cup in Sydney firmly in our minds.
“That work starts now and I’m looking forward to supporting this very talented squad through this Taini Jamison series.”
England Netball said their frontline players and staff, including Thirlby, would “return” for their three-match series at home to South Africa in December.
The three-match series against the Silver Ferns begins in Christchurch on September 24.
Last year’s Taini Jamison Trophy, contested between the Silver Ferns and Jamaica, descended into a farce when the Sunshine Girls failed to obtain visas in time and only arrived with seven players, forcing the series to be reduced to just two matches.
England squad
Shooters: Sarah Glasgow, Emma Thacker, Berri Neil, Sophie Drakeford-Lewis
Midcourters: Hannah Joseph, Alicia Scholes, Elle McDonald, Amy Carter, Ellie Rattu
Defenders: Ella Bowen, Vicki Oyesola, Halimat Adio, Jayda Pechova, Alice Harvey
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