Silver Ferns’ assistant coach Def Fuller on closing the gap

Silver Ferns’ assistant coach Deb Fuller says January’s Quad Series highlighted the gap between the ANZ Premiership and what’s needed at the international level.

And she’s working closely with specialist coaches to try to bridge that gap, less than five months out from the Commonwealth Games.

The Silver Ferns were beaten by England and Australia and they only just edged South Africa in the Quad Series.

“There’s definitely a gap and I think there’s a gap in our domestic competition, if you compare our domestic competition with others,” Fuller said.

“International netball is about playing four phases of the game – zero phase is before you’re even involved with the ball. Then the fourth phase is what we do after the ball has been passed.

“We’ve got individuals who have that quality, but I don’t think we have got that across the board. it’s not something that has been embedded across the whole teams.”

Fuller said there were times during the Quad series when New Zealand didn’t pick up on what the opposition were doing.

“When teams do it to us, it makes us very uncomfortable, it takes our Kiwi style of time and space away from us and so it’s something that we need to prepare for to go into Commonwealth Games feeling very confident that we can manage whatever is thrown at us.”

Mystics huddle. ANZ Premiership netball final, Northern Mystics v Tactix. Spark Arena, Auckland. Sunday 8 August 2021.
Photo: Andrew Cornaga/Photosport Ltd 2021

Fuller, along with specialist coaches including former Silver Ferns’ coach Yvonne Willering, have been running sessions with ANZ teams, rather than just with members of the Silver Ferns’ squads.

“This year, we’ve taken a different approach and been quite co-ordinated in our effort going into clubs. It’s really important if players are going to be accountable for their selection that they get as many points of reference on their game that they can.”

Fuller said players needed to be more deliberate about what they were setting up on both attack and defence.

“It’s a really important piece of international netball that gets overlooked when you’re not pushed every week.”

Fuller said it came down to fitness and awareness.

“We do have levels of fitness that match and probably also outwork international opposition but it’s actually understanding strategies that can make a team play out of position, make the space look crowded and so I’m hoping that will become very much part of ANZ game play.”

Discipline needed

Yvonne Willering told the Kiwi Netball Show a lot of hope was also resting on the return of former Silver Ferns’ captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio, who’s coming back from having a baby.

“On and off the court she is needed in the team. She is prepared to shoot long and Ekenasio also has a tremendous influence in the team as a whole.”

Willering said the Silver Ferns had that in the past with Laura Langman and Casey Kopua, but they needed more of it.

“Ekenasio is a player that basically says you know ‘give 100 percent as I do’.

“We’ve got a lot of nice leaders in the team …but not quite the same as saying ‘listen people, I’m giving my best, you give your best’.”

Ameliaranne Ekenasio
Photo: PHOTOSPORT

As part of the specialist coaching programme Willering said one of her aims was to reduce the penalty count.

When the Silver Ferns lost to Australia and England in January, they racked up 61 and 57 penalties respectively, significantly more than their opponents.

“If you have a look at the ANZ games last year – over 100 penalties a game in some of the games and you can’t have a defence player standing beside a player. So it’s got to be about taking clean intercepts and it’s also got to be about consistency in performance,” Willering said.

“You’ve got to appreciate the players took their game plan from the ANZ to the Silver Ferns and suddenly they realised that what was happening in the ANZ, yeah they were getting penalised but it wasn’t of a great concern.

“Well at the Silver Ferns level if you get penalised it is of great concern because you’re standing beside the player and you’re not actually actively involved in the game.”

Former Silver Ferns’ coach Yvonne Willering
Photo: Photosport

Willering said the Silver Ferns were particularly exposed by Australia and the ANZ Premiership had to be of better quality as the lead in into the Commonwealth Games.

“Even from centre pass-off we struggled at times and if that ball doesn’t go into your shooters with a lot of confidence then also your shooting stats are going to go down so that is something that they have to look at.”

Defensive depth

Despite the unavailability of Jane Watson and veteran defender Katrina Rore for the Silver Ferns’ Commonwealth Games campaign, Fuller still feels there’s good depth in the defensive stocks.

Kayla Johnson and Phoenix Karaka were recalled for the Quad Series, and Michaela Sokolich-Beatson is back from injury.

“The three of them are ball getters …they have got a wonderful ability to execute intercepts off the body. It’s fantastic to have them in contention for selection,” Fuller said.

“I thought Karin Burger came right in the Quad Series after a bit of a tough start.

“But just seeing what she could do, the space that she could cover, the range that she could get to was excellent.

“Kelly Jury is always a great threat to put under the post against another tall from opposition countries.

“It’s just about now fine tuning, looking at the chemistry, and seeing who can be consistently dominant in each game throughout the ANZ.”

Silver Ferns defender Kayla Johnson
Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2017 www.photosport.nz

Fuller was impressed with Johnson’s return, having not played any domestic netball for two years.

“And the fact that her body is holding up. Before she left to go to Australia [in 2019] she was under an injury cloud but that wasn’t an issue, that wasn’t the first thing you mentioned when you mentioned her name.

“The first thing you mentioned [during the Quad series] is her anticipation, her ability to change direction and her ability to be a real threat in that GD and WD position.”

Willering said Johnson’s return to the Silver Ferns was timely.

“She’s a tough defender…and she is prepared to take that ball through on attack and even feed the shooters if they happen to be on,” Willering said.

“I thought that she had some good games there and I can just see her getting better and better …I’m going to be interested to see her progression because I know that if she’s playing well, she’s going to included in the Ferns.”

Fuller said in what would be a Covid disrupted ANZ Premiership, those pushing for New Zealand selection would have to make the most of every single game they got.

The ANZ Premiership starts this Sunday with the Magic hosting the Mystics in Hamilton.