Australia players celebrate winning the netball gold medal match between Australia and New Zealand at The Hydro venue during the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.
Australia gained revenge on New Zealand by beating the defending champions 58-40 in a comfortable netball final victory at the Commonwealth Games yesterday.
The Silver Ferns, who had earned a last-gasp 35-34 victory against England in the semi-finals, had an off day in front of goal and that proved costly as their Antipodean rivals took full advantage.
Goal shooter Caitlin Bassett, who had scored 41 points in the semi-final 57-42 win over Jamaica, was easily the standout player for Australia as she scored 49 points with a 92 per cent success rate.
“We’re unbelievably ecstatic,” said Diamonds captain Laura Geitz. “We knew the Kiwis would pose a challenge. I know it sounds like a cliche, but we stuck to our gameplan.
“Obviously you need to make the most of your opportunities against New Zealand. They don’t make too many errors.
“I’m very proud of the way the girls conducted themselves today.
“We’ve paid a lot of attention to starting after half-time. It’s nice to have a strong start. We knew never to underestimate the Kiwis.”
The match had the makings of a similar classic to 2010, which went to extra-time, with there being little to choose from between the two sides after the first quarter at 14-14.
But Australia took a narrow lead of 28-24 into half-time and never looked back.
The two nations have contested every single final since netball became a Commonwealth Games sport in 1998 but this was Australia’s first victory since 2002 in Manchester. Jamaica took the bronze medal after a fine final quarter to beat England 52-48.