As the Silver Ferns regroup after a tournament-ending injury to key shooter Grace Nweke, LockerRoom looks at who must stand up for the team to win the Netball World Cup.
No one doubted the Silver Ferns would notch up a fourth victory at the Netball World Cup over world No.8 Wales - the 83-34 scoreline largely unsurprising.
But the burning question before the match in Cape Town last night was: Who will replace shooting star Grace Nweke in the Ferns line-up?
Dispiriting news out of the Ferns camp last night confirmed 21-year-old Nweke has been ruled out of the rest of the World Cup, after injuring her knee in the previous day's game against Singapore.
Scans revealed a partial tear in her patella tendon, creating a whole new dilemma for the Ferns, who've been largely reliant on the goal shoot in their last outings.
While Nweke is unique - through her astounding shooting volume and 1.93m height - the Ferns needed another dominant goal shoot to take on the bulk of their shooting and, most importantly, be accurate.
And last night they found that player, in Maia Wilson.
Already at this tournament Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua had been trying out Wilson at goal attack, with Nweke solely at goal shoot. But Nweke’s sudden injury changed everything.
In her 45 minutes at goal shoot against Wales, Wilson came off having shot 49 goals at 100 percent accuracy.
A shooter with a strong hold, Wilson also has great movement, and created a powerful moving circle with captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio.
Something Wilson has that Nweke doesn’t is greater accuracy from mid-long range, which has worked for the Ferns in the past.
Being a replacement for Nweke is humbling and a privilege for 25-year-old Wilson, playing at her first World Cup.
“I’m just proud to be able to be on court and do my sissy-boo Grace Nweke as much as I can," Wilson told Sky Sport after the win over Wales.
“She’s [Nweke] a massive pillar in our team in not only what she brings on-court but also the voice that she has off-court. We work really well together and we compete to get that goal shoot bib. It’s on me to be able to do that with justice and do that with pride for her, so I'm very grateful to be here.”
Think back four years to Ferns victory at the 2019 Netball World Cup.
Ekenasio paired with Maria Folau, the long range specialist, and the two were game winners for the Silver Ferns. Their movement and ability to shoot from anywhere in the circle pushed the Ferns to their first World Cup title since 2003.
New Zealand have been without a tall, dominant goal shoot since the retirement of Irene van Dyk in 2014, but found those qualities in Nweke, who made her international debut in 2021.
So how does their game plan change without the Mystics shooter?
Luckily, Taurua had been playing with combinations in their first three pool games, rotating all four of her shooters.
Te Paea Selby-Rickit had a standout game against Singapore, shooting 49 from 51. Able to play both shooting positions, Selby-Rickit also has a great connection with wing attack Gina Crampton, having played with her for years at the Steel and in the Ferns.
And fortunately, they have another shooting option too. In a first for the Netball World Cup, teams are allowed to call on a reserve player to replace any injured or ill members of their team.
Twenty-two-year-old Tiana Metuarau was the sole shooter in the Ferns' three travelling reserves, and is now a member of the 12-strong team for their future games.
Primarily a goal attack, Metuarau doesn’t always have a wealth of volume, but can provide good support in the midcourt, coming out for centre pass receives and creating space for her goal shoot.
The daughter of former Ferns coach and captain Waimarama Taumaunu, Metuarau had to apologise to her mum, who needed to make a last-minute change in flights. Taumaunu was in Cape Town, but was due to fly home on the morning of the Wales game when Metuarau got the news of her inclusion in the squad.
Taurua took the opportunity to introduce Metuarau to the World Cup straight away, earning her seventh Ferns cap in a third quarter appearance last night. She missed her first shot, but sunk four of five attempts, and made some impressive feeds to Wilson and then Selby-Rickit in her 20 minutes of play.
Metuarau admits she was nervous going into the Welsh game.
“With some pretty devastating news for GG [Nweke]...I almost feel a little bit guilty but I suppose it’s the nature of sport," she told Sky Sport.
"We’ve just been trying to rally around her. But also know that we have a task at hand, and we’re trying to move forward and put out some really good performances.”
Ekenasio says she's proud of how her team performed out on court, following the devastating news for their teammate.
“The emotions were high,” she says. "We had to channel that emotion and play for her. We’ve got her back."
*The Silver Ferns now have a few days off, before facing South Africa at 4am on Thursday (NZT). They then have to back it up against Jamaica at 9pm that evening.
