Netball: NZu21 in close win over England

FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida - New Zealand's under-21 netball team continued their winning streak with a 46-45 victory over England U21 here today (NZ time).

Coach Te Aroha Keenan played all four of her shooters during the game, with 15 year-old Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit playing three quarters at goal shoot.

Maria Tutaia replaced her for the last quarter, shooting an impressive 13 goals from 13 attempts.Keenan said the game was a lesson in persistence for her side who came from behind in the last quarter to take the game.

"It's a credit to the team that they had the fighting spirit to come back in the last quarter.

"In saying that, England U21 has improved since we met them last year, which is great for the future of the game internationally.

"However, we need to reduce the number of errors in our game -- I'm looking for some real improvement when we come up against Australia U21 tomorrow."

Yesterday, New Zealand beat a United States Open team 97-13 while they won their series against Jamaica 2-1 last week.The tour to Jamaica and the United States is part of the squads preparation for the World Youth Champs in July.

Score: New Zealand U21 46 England U21 45. Halftime: 20-22.

Result: New Zealand U21 97 United States 13. Halftime: 50-7.

- NZPA