Ray Of Hope
Tagged in: In The News, Tall Ferns
A severely depleted Tall Fern squad gave their world champion rivals something to think about before falling 60-80 in the second of two “friendly” games at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra.
Less than 24 hours after suffering a 45-point thrashing in Game One, the plucky Kiwis actually edged the Australian Opals in the second (19-17) and third (19-18) quarters, but could never completely recover from a shaky start that saw them 21 points down early in the second period.
Already without injured starters Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe and Jess McCormack, and with forward Lisa Wallbutton a late withdrawal from the five-day camp, coach Mike McHugh also had to contend with the absence of Noni Wharemate and Charmian Purcell through religious reasons.
Australia scored the first nine points of the contest, forcing the Kiwis into five turnovers before they could open their account. Pressure defence had forced the Ferns into 34 errors the previous night and they had 11 more through the opening period of this outing.
But trailing 11-25 after 10 minutes and conceding seven straight points to open the second quarter, the Kiwis shot 11/12 from the line for an 11-2 rally that had them right back in contention.
Remember, less than 24 hours earlier, they had scored just 15 points in the entire second half. This time, they bettered that output in each of the middle two quarters.
“There were times in the first game, we looked like five year olds out there,” rued McHugh. “But this time, we hung in there and reeled them back a bit.
“With a quarter to go, it was only 10 points and anyone’s game, but we had three straight turnovers that suddenly made it a 20-point game.”
Down just 51-62 early in the final term, New Zealand allowed their opponents nine consecutive points that squashed any thoughts of an upset.
Veteran centre Aneka Kerr was again the only Fern to score in double figures, contributing a game-high 19 points (7/12 FG, 5/8 FT) and six rebounds. Young forward Toni Edmondson had eight points and no turnovers in 21 minutes, US-based newcomer Clare Bodensteiner warmed to her task with seven points (2/2 3pt), while point guard Angela Marino committed seven turnovers, but battled for seven points (1/7 FG, 1/3 3pt, 4/4 FT), six assists, three rebounds and a steal.
Since losing to the Opals by 39 in the 2004 Athens Olympic quarterfinals, the Tall Ferns have lost eight times to their trans Tasman neighbours by an average of 32 points, so this result represented an improvement of sorts.
This was far from a full-strength Australian team. Most of their stars were still playing for their professional clubs in Europe and some that had fronted the night before were rested for the return encounter.
“When Australia, the US or Russia are at full strength, they are a day ahead of everyone else in the world,” said McHugh. “But when they field a line-up like this, they are still the equivalent of a Spain or Czech Republic, so this gives us something to look for ward to.”
Co-incidentally, the Tall Ferns will face those two teams on a European tour in May/June.
“I was really happy with this camp and this was a good note to finish on.”
Twelve players will named tomorrow for the Good Luck Beijing tournament – the official Olympic test event – from April 19-24.
Trans Tasman National Teams Camp
AIS, Canberra
Sunday, April 6
Australian Opals 80 (Emma Randall 17, Carly Wilson 12, Abby Bishop 12, Erin Phillips 11) NZ Tall Ferns 60 (Aneka Kerr 19)
Q 25-11
HT 42-30 (17-19)
3Q 60-49 (18-19)
FT 80-60 (20-11)
NZ Tall Ferns v Australian Opals Game Two Webcast
