Netball: How we blew it - Aitken

By DAVID LEGGAT at the Games

The head, not the body, got Australia the gold medal in a dramatic, white-knuckle final yesterday, according to their coach, Jill McIntosh.

It took extra time, then netball's version of soccer's golden goal - a two-goal advantage - to separate the only contenders for the top two spots on the world ladder, before classy attacker Sharelle McMahon potted the crucial goal to give Australia a 57-55 win.

McMahon is making a habit of crushing New Zealand hopes. She sank the winner in the 42-41 world championship decider in Christchurch three years ago on the final whistle.

There were tears on that occasion among the Silver Ferns bench. Not so after yesterday's gripping contest. They were probably too drained to give off any emotion as the Australians found a second wind and after the final whistle cavorted about the court as the Silver Ferns clustered in the middle. For McIntosh, durability of the mind, rather than the body, was the key factor.

"At the start of extra time it just depended on who remained mentally the strongest," McIntosh said.

"Physically everyone just gave their all, so it came down to a mental battle."

And no worries your team would measure up on that count, Jill?

"We'd done it before, so I had every confidence."

A glance down the recent history of these games backs her assuredness.

Her counterpart, Ruth Aitken, also offered an insight which added an extra piece to the overall picture.

Her team believed they should have won the game in normal time, she said.

They were 46-45 ahead going into the last minute, and with the centre pass-off.

"Australia were lucky to get back at the end of normal time, and they were on an upward roll [when extra time began]," Aitken said.

The momentum had shifted and the Silver Ferns were left bemoaning a glorious chance to get one over their fierce rivals.

The Manchester Arena was an Australasian oasis in old Blighty for the final, a sea of flags and banners proclaiming things which would mean nothing outside either of those countries ("We're not in Guatemala now, Dr Ropata").

What probably hurt New Zealand was the knowledge that Australia were not the outstanding combination of recent years.

They toiled hard, had experience at the back in Liz Ellis and Katherine Harby-Williams, and diligent workers through the court.

New Zealand held a six-goal lead late in the first quarter, and a 53-51 lead with 1m 35s left in extra time, but blew it.

While Donna Loffhagen was the game's sharpest shooter, goaling 20 of 21 attempts, it was a bad time for Irene Van Dyk to have an off day. She managed just 35 out of 49 attempts, having bagged a 94 per cent success rate in the tournament going into the final.

It is easy to point the finger at a high-profile player in a vital position after a team's collective failure. Aitken was right to stress after the game that there was a shared responsibility for failing to grasp the initiative and hold onto it.

The defensive combination of Vilimaina Davu and Sheryl Clarke, in their first game together against Australia, did a sterling job.

But there were problems in midcourt, where Anna Rowberry and captain Julie Seymour were inconsistent in their feeding to the goal circle.

"Certainly Irene will be kicking herself, but little things happened through the court at various times," Aitken said.

While fortunes tilted back and forth throughout a game rich in emotion but far from error-free, New Zealand led 16-13 at quarter-time, and 25-23 at halftime.

Australia put on a seven-goal run to lead 30-26, but going into the last quarter it was 37-37. They went toe to toe in the final quarter, before the nerve-jangling conclusion.

Aitken admitted she toyed with the idea of introducing fresh legs for the final stages, but "I just felt [that with] the intensity and adrenalin it might have upset things. Those are the things coaches lose sleep about for a long time."

In the end, Australia were able to grasp the nettle. It could have gone either way.

Is it in the players' heads that they cannot beat Australia, Aitken was asked.

"No, definitely not," she replied firmly.

The unsettling thing for the Silver Ferns is that is what seems to happen when it really matters.