England were beaten 70-57 by Australia on Thursday, the first of a three-match series ahead of a further three-Test tour of New Zealand; watch the Vitality Roses in action on Sunday from 6.30am (7am start) on the Sky Sports YouTube channel
Friday 20 September 2024 13:26, UK
England head coach Jess Thirlby believes her side can learn a lot from their defeat to Australia when the Vitality Roses face the world champions again on Sunday, live on Sky Sports.
The first match of the Vitality Roses' three-Test series against the Australian Diamonds end in a 70-57 defeat in Adelaide on Thursday, where the hosts were in control for large periods of the game.
An inexperienced England side did fight back from a 12-point half-time deficit to temporarily get within five points of Australia during the final quarter, giving the Vitality Roses hope they can level the series when they travel to Sydney for the second Test.
"I think up until the half-time point we were bit naive for patches on both ends of the court," Thirlby admitted. "We were finding our feet and defensively it was taking us a bit of time to reposition.
"There were no real surprises on what to expect from the Diamonds, which is why it's a bit frustrating, and I think in attack we fell short in options and availability, and the workload wasn't high enough.
"We had an opportunity in that last quarter to get it back to four with a decent amount of time on the clock and at that point we were left wanting.
"So we've asked ourselves the question: 'At that point, was our intent to try and take the game or not?' That's the kind of shift we need to see from ourselves.
"We made hard work of it at times, offered a good response, but really no excuses for us to then lose by a margin like that. That's something that will clearly drive us and motivate us now for Sunday's game."
Lois Pearson made her debut on Thursday and will feature again on Sunday, with coverage live on Sky Sports Mix and - for free - on the Sky Sports YouTube channel from 6.30am ahead of a 7am start, while captain Helen Housby has been pleased with what she has seen from a young England side.
"We showed glimpses of some really good stuff," Housby said after the opening Test. "I think it is now just about solidifying our combinations and get used to playing at this level, as a lot of our girls haven't played at this level.
"I thought we showed some really good stuff, we just need to be a little bit more consistent."
Origin Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich is looking to complete a series victory with a game to spare, having been impressed by her side's performance and their record goal tally in an international against England.
"To get 70 goals in a game means the ball is moving fast and we're getting enough supply," Marinkovich explained. "You can see there are more structural plays coming into [our game], we're not just relying on individuals to get ball.
"There was some real ball speed, we didn't just have to use our foot speed the whole time, we could use the angles and there were lots of options."
Watch the Vitality Roses' tour of Australia and New Zealand live on Sky Sports. The second match is live on Sunday from 6.30am on Sky Sports Mix and - for free - on the Sky Sports YouTube channel, ahead of a 7am start. Stream netball and more sport with NOW.
