Ameliaranne Ekenasio of New Zealand (left) in action during the Constellation Cup netball match between the Australia Diamonds and the New Zealand Silver Ferns at John Cain Arena in Melbourne, Wednesday, October 19, 2022. (AAP Image/James Ross/ www.photosport.nz Photo: AAP / www.photosport.nz
The Silver Ferns need to bring a ruthless mentality to their four-Test Constellation Cup series against Australia, assistant coach Deb Fuller says.
The Silver Ferns are coming off the back of a 2-1 series loss to England and the world champion Australian Diamonds will pose a huge challenge for New Zealand.
The Silver Ferns had a five-day camp in Napier following the England series and Fuller said shifting into fifth gear to be ready to take on Australia was the focus.
Fuller said the Taini Jamison series against England, which has seen them overtake New Zealand to second in the latest World Netball rankings, highlighted a few issues.
"What cost us was ball possession and when you lose ball possession it's either through timing or not having enough options or just getting the connections between the playing group, which was still a bit rusty. So it was really good to get out on court to march through some plays but also work on building some ruthless mentality that we want to bring to these Tests with Australia into a big part of our playing menu," Fuller said.
The Silver Ferns won the final Test against the Roses where Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua kept her starting seven on court for the whole game.
Fuller said consolidating a starting line-up during the Constellation Cup would be ideal.
"The consolidation comes from accuracy so if you are super accurate in training and you can be really precise with where you place the ball and how you work with others, then that gives us real stability.
"And I know Noeline had been wanting that all through the English series so the girls have done a lot of work in Napier of really getting the spine of the team established and so we're hoping that will carry on for the next four Tests."
Fuller said slowing down the Diamonds' attacking flow will be crucial.
"It's really important that we really dial up a whole lot of anticipation and be able to read the play quickly. They are quite masterful in their attacking end with Liz Watson being such an experienced captain and architect of that attacking play so it's really important that we can put pressure on those key players right from the start."
Young defender Parris Mason, who made a fine debut during the England series, is under an injury cloud after tweaking her ankle in the final training session in Napier.
Fuller said Mason was unlikely to be ready for the first Test but with recovery going well, it was hoped she might be ready for the second Test.
Parris Mason (left) debuted against England. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Fuller, the Silver Ferns specialist defensive coach, was pleased with Mason's first foray into international netball.
"Eighteen months ago Parris was playing in the NNL competition so she hasn't even had two full seasons of ANZ under her belt. Knowing that someone with her ability, her mentality and her game focus can match it against the world's best is exciting.
"And it was the same with Claire O'Brien, who again had no international experience and stepped into the role of wing attack in the third Test and took command of the attack end."
Experienced defender Phoenix Karaka has returned to the side, having recovered from illness.
Fuller said the defence end did well turning over ball in the England series but that unit will need to step it up again.
"We're about to come up against one of the most accurate attacking lines in the world and they don't throw much away and they don't make many errors so we've got to really create a lot of pressure because with pressure we create opportunities on defence."
The first test is on Sunday in Wellington.
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