Netball: Midcourt maestros ready to stand tall

Assistant coach Waimarama Taumaunu has rubbished suggestions the NZ midcourt is too short. Photo / Getty Images

New Zealand netball's midcourt maestros, sporadically missing in action during Monday night's 44-48 loss to a surprisingly well-organised World 7 in Wellington, are ready to take a step up in the second test in Rotorua tonight.

With Temepara George welcomed back from her two-year self-imposed exile from international netball, the perception was that the Silver Ferns' forward court would leap into action right from the first whistle of the three-test series.

Laura Langman, who had done an impressive job up-grading her skills to take on the centre's role last year, reverted back to wing defence; George, a 59-test veteran and integral part of the 2003 world championship-winning team, took on the pivotal centre's role while newcomer Liana Barrett-Chase was poised to continue developing at wing attack.

That potential remained unrealised as the World 7 dominated the midcourt and on defence, forcing error after error from the Silver Ferns, and converting the resulting possession in points on the board.

And while there were mutterings about the lack of height in the New Zealand attack, the reality was the Silver Ferns' problems on attack didn't stem from a shortage of stature.

True, George is hardly imposing at 1.70m tall, just 2cm taller than Barrett-Chase and not much less than Langman's 1.73m. But as assistant coach Waimarama Taumaunu pointed out yesterday, height really wasn't an issue in the first-up loss.

"You look at the Australian team which won the world champs in 2007 - those von Bertouch sisters weren't giants and they just ran around every team there," she said.

Natalie von Bertouch, at 1.75m, still plays for the Diamonds and will come up against the Silver Ferns next month in five matches over 17 days on both sides of the Tasman. Sister Laura, a wee dynamo at just 1.67m, has since retired from international netball, but still played a vital role in the Adelaide Thunderbirds' run in the transtasman league to make the grand final.

New Zealand coach Ruth Aitken was also adamant the Silver Ferns' attacking line-up could grow into a real force.

"We certainly feel that fast midcourt can have some real benefits for us, but it's only in its infancy really. We're making some headway in terms of the attacking through-court."

George, still buzzing two days later over her return to international netball, was clinical as she assessed her first test since May 2007.

"I really enjoyed it but there's still plenty of things to work on. The motto for us is fitter, faster and stronger, and that's what we're aiming for," she said.

Langman, with 41 test caps at still only 23 years old, dismisses any thoughts that a midcourt height deficit was a factor in Monday's loss.

"I think it was more our links. In our forward court, they've got really good ball skills so they can combat that height mismatch," she said "What's more important is working on those links and making them seamless."

While she said she had relished the challenge of developing her game as an attacking midcourter, Langman was now enjoying the chance to get back to her roots as a wing defence.

"I think defence really comes naturally to me, and I really enjoyed my time out there again in Wellington," she said ahead of tonight's second test.

"I've got a lot I need to improve, particularly my links with my inside circle - just making sure we can gain a lot more ball, and making sure we can be really dominant in bringing the ball through."

- NZPA