Amelia Walmsley in action against Australia. Photo: Jeremy Ward/Photosport
The Silver Ferns have bounced back in style to beat Australian Diamonds 61-52 in their Constellation Cup game in Hamilton.
The nine-goal win marks a significant turnaround in fortunes after back-to-back 17-goal losses to Australia in Melbourne and Sydney.
Every player in the Silver Ferns' 12-person squad took the court in the win and the younger players made their mark during the third quarter.
New Zealand had more ball that the Diamonds, with 67 shots at goal compared to Australia's 58, Grace Nweke making the most of her opportunities with a 44 from 46.
A one-goal lead to the Silver Ferns after the first quarter, followed by a drawn second quarter, and a nine-goal advantage to the home side in the third, while restricting Australia to just one winning quarter - the last by one goal - told the tale of the match.
The Ferns recovered from a rocky start to keep the Aussies honest through a compelling first quarter. Slumping to an early 5-1 deficit after being put off-stride by the imposing defensive duo of Courtney Bruce and Sunday Aryang, they lifted across all areas of the court.
NZ defender Kelly Jackson helped limit the ball getting into the hands of dangerous shooter Sophie Garbin, while persistent hustle from all the New Zealand players and the attack-line finding their flow with good ball into key shooting target Nweke ignited the fightback.
Revelling in the atmosphere and not taking a backward step, the Silver Ferns snuck into a 13-12 lead at the first break.
Full of energy and intensity, they could not have asked for a better start on the resumption, rattling in the first five goals to push out to a six-goal advantage.
With the attack-line growing in confidence, the ball delivery to Nweke improved and the towering shooter made no mistake in converting. As expected, the Diamonds came roaring back, replacing Aryang with Sarah Klau, while shooter Sophie Dwyer took over from the well-performed Kiera Austin.
The Silver Ferns also made changes, with Amelia Walmsley getting her first opportunity of the series for the impressive Georgia Heffernan at goal attack and Kimiora Poi taking over at centre. Gordon made the move forward to wing attack.
Interim captain Karin Burger was a constant presence for the home side, with her relentless work on defence and availability through court on attack.
In an increasing physical out, with both sides providing exciting and committed passages in a riveting contest, the Ferns held on - with a perfect shooting record during the first half - in a drawn second quarter to claim a slim 29-28 lead at the main break.
Continuing to build in their confidence on attack, Gordon from short range and Kate Heffernan from long range delivered a flurry of perfectly placed ball into Nweke's hands during a dominant third quarter.
At the other end, Jackson and the ever-present Burger left their mark with clutch pick-ups, while negating the Australian shooting threat. Impressive Diamonds defender Bruce was forced off court, after suffering a rolled ankle, prompting a raft of changes, including replacing captain Liz Watson at centre with Georgie Horjus.
The Silver Ferns responded with changes of their own, including the introduction of rising young defender Catherine Hall at goalkeeper. Keeping on task, the home side delivered their best quarter of the series, with Walmsley and Nweke combining expertly in the shooting circle to push the Silver Ferns out to a well-executed 49-39 lead at the final turn.
Making sure there was no repeat of the opening two tests, which featured second-half slumps, the NZ women kept their intent at the forefront in a defining run to the line and ensuring there was no hint of a Diamonds comeback.
Australia lead the Constellation Cup series 2-1 before the final match in Christchurch on Wednesday night.
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