England Roses fall to World Cup final defeat

England fell to a disappointing Netball World Cup final defeat on Sunday 6 August, losing 61-45 to Australia.

The Roses were competing in their first final compared to Australia’s ninth, but optimism was high.

A landmark win over the Aussies in the group stages had lifted expectations that a World Cup victory could follow, and the early passages indicated play would be close.

Australia were frequently forcing England into deep positions, but the Roses were able to keep control of the dangerous Australian shooting line.

With the action poised at 13-13 after the first quarter, some misplaced passing from Australia began to gift England some opportunities.

Australian defensive ranks continued to prove a hard nut to crack for England, Jo Weston in particular impressing, but the first-time finalists were able to keep the 11-time champions in check.

Distance was established by the end of the second quarter, with Australia leading 27 to 23, and this was only extended in the third stanza.

The third and penultimate quarter of netball matches are sometimes referred to as ‘championship quarters’ due their ability to switch the direction of matches.

In the case of Sunday’s final, it rang true. Energised by some wise substitutions from Australian coach Stacey Marinkovich, England’s opponents had them on the rocks.

But after a momentous few years for England’s netballers, which has seen the side win Commonwealth gold in 2018 and host the World Cup on home turf in 2019, disappointment reigns

A goal from one of the Roses’s leading stars, Ellie Cardwell, which resulted in the 28-year-old’s foot hanging trepidatiously out of the court, seemed to epitomise the team’s increasingly fragile position. The Aussies had turned the taps on and errors were leaking.

A nine-goal lead by the beginnings of the fourth and final quarter was not unassailable but surely felt like it. Critically, coach Jess Thirlby’s changes could not turn the tables.

“We are obviously gutted with a losing margin like that but such is the difference between seasoned finalists and a team in their first final,” said Thirlby after the match.

“Today was always going to be a tough ask, you just can’t throw ball like that against Australia in a final.

“If we do that, we need to find a way to win it back. Unfortunately both of those things eluded us for long periods during the match.”

In reaching the last two, England have broken an Antipodean duopoly in the Netball World Cup which had seen Australia and New Zealand contest all but one of the previous eight finals.

But after a momentous few years for England’s netballers, which has seen the side win Commonwealth gold in 2018 and host the World Cup on home turf in 2019, disappointment reigns.

The Roses must settle sourly for silver, knowing it could have been much more.