Jamaica's goal shooter Elaine Davis getting ready to shoot past the defence of New Zealand's Anna Veronese during yesterday's second netball Tri-Test at the National Arena. Jamaica won 53-44 to level the series 1-1. - Winston Sill/Freelance PhotographerIN A dazzling display Jamaica's Sunshine Girls scored a historic victory over New Zealand at the National Arena yesterday to level the Tri-Test international netball series 1-1.
The big 53-44 win marked the first time in netball history that Jamaica were defeating the New Zealanders.
New Zealand, ranked number two in the world, won Thursday's first Test 46-44.
"They surprised us for sure by winning. We knew they would come back but the victory caught us off guard," New Zealand's coach Ruth Aitken said.
A sleepless Saturday night was reportedly spent in the camp as the Sunshine Girls worked on a plan to dazzle the visitors in game two.
And that they did.
The young side scored three consecutive goals before the Silver Ferns got a point on the scoreboard and maintained the edge until New Zealand equalised at 9-9.
One Irene Van Dyk basket later, the visitors took the lead (for the first and only time in the game) but Jamaica remained steadfast and by the end of the first period were back in control at 13-10.
New Zealand made a change in defence for the next quarter but the Sunshine Girls widened their lead to 29-20 at half time.
By this time spectators in a packed National Arena were on a high, intoxicated by the scent of victory. The Girls meanwhile relished the attention and responded appreciatively with an even better performance when the game resumed.
New Zealand attempted to fix both their attack and defence with four substitutions. The Sunshine Girls romped to a 10-goal lead (32-22) then 11 (35-24) but were soon cut down to five (37-32) as the changes took effect.
The whistle couldn't have come sooner as the Jamaicans hung on for 40-34 at the end of the third quarter.
Continuously buoyed by the large crowd, the locals remained focused and composed as they cruised to their nine-goal win.
"Thrilling" was how Jamaica's coach Maureen Hall described the win.
"I'm so excited. It's the first time we've beaten them and it's a thrilling feeling. We decided after Saturday's game that we were going to cut down on our mistakes and work towards winning.
"We did just that. We got an excellent start so we just built on it. We're very happy," she said.
Hall expects that New Zealand will be at full throttle for the final Test tomorrow evening at 6:00 at the same venue.
The Ferns meanwhile have identified their weaknesses and will get back to the drawing board to, as Aitken puts it, "get our act together".
