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Northern Mystics shooter Grace Nweke has earned her first call to the Silver Ferns.
Teen sensation Grace Nweke is one step closer to making her Silver Ferns debut after shooting against the New Zealand team for this week’s Cadbury Netball Series.
Nweke, an 18-year-old shot on goal, has been a revelation for Northern Mystics for the past two ANZ Premiership seasons and led the competition with 471 goals in 2020.
However, her selection at Silver Ferns for the four-team tournament at Palmerston North came as a surprise given that she was not included in the original New Zealand squad announced in August.
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Ameliaranne Ekenasio, Jane Watson and Gina Crampton are co-founders of Skills Plus, which offer a personalized coaching service to individuals, teams and organizations.
Described by coach Noeline Taurua as a “physical beast”, the 1.93m Nweke made her way into contention at last week’s camp in Wellington, where Taurua highlighted that all 15 spots were up for grabs.
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“What it probably gives at this stage is a point of difference at the end of the shoot,” Taurua said.
“At ANZ, his shooting stats were reasonably high, but he still needs to turn up the volume. But she, as you can see, is a physical beast in the back and bringing her into the mix gives us options at that end of the shoot.
“It will be a great test [for her] and a little baptism of fire, but it’s the best way to see how he’ll cope. “
Joining Nweke to win the selection from outside the original Silver Ferns team are Sam Winders (née Sinclair) and shooter Monica Falkner.
Falkner missed the entire Premiership season after sustaining an ACL injury in last year’s national series.
“He presented very well, usually he’s not a person we should worry about anyway with his fitness levels because he’s always physically capable, but I wanted to see how he looked on the court after his ACL injury. “.
Seasoned trio Bailey Mes, Temalisi Fakahokotau and Katrina Rore were deemed unavailable for selection due to injury management and medical reasons, and will not be performing again this year.
Hagen Hopkins / Getty Images
The defense of starting wing Katrina Rore has been ruled out of the upcoming Silver Ferns series due to medical reasons.
The outlook is more positive for captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio, who has been given the go-ahead after shaking off a complaint from Achilles, but will be handled with care throughout the tournament.
Taurua said Ekenasio will likely rest against the under-21 team, the weakest of the three teams they will face at Fly Palmy Arena, to prepare for next week’s series with England.
“The key is that we don’t want to overload her, but she also needs to have time in court. We will have to manage how it stops. We practically had a full workout today, but that means he will have to have a lighter load tonight. “
Michaela Sokolich-Beatson and rookie Maddy Gordon missed the team and will instead play for New Zealand A.
Dianne Manson / Getty Images
Silver Ferns captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio will lead New Zealand after shaking off a complaint from Achilles.
Three other players from the Silver Ferns team will be released to play for the development team during the tournament, which begins on Wednesday.
“I still see her in the mix. It’s only for now, at this stage, that it isn’t, ”Taurua said of Gordon’s omission. “But she’s definitely one of those players that is exciting and it’s just a matter of time for her.”
Silver Ferns’ squad will be reduced to just 12 before the three-Test series against England.
Squad of Silver Ferns
Shooters: Ameliaranne Ekenasio, Monica Falkner, Grace Nweke, Te Paea Selby-Rickit, Maia Wilson
Mid-court: Gina Crampton, Claire Kersten, Kimiora Poi, Shannon Saunders, Sam Sinclair and Whitney Souness
Defenders: Karin Burger, Sulu Fitzpatrick, Kelly Jury, Jane Watson.
