Australia v England Netball Test – Adelaide, October 2008 Photo courtesy of Paddynapper on Flickr.com

Any day now the Australian Diamonds Netball team will be winging their way to the UK for Test Series against Scotland and England. There will be two Tests against Scotland on 14^th & 16^th February, followed by three Tests against England on 19^th, 21^st & 23^rd February.

Coach Norma Plummer has drafted in some younger and less experienced girls, some of whom will be earning their first international caps, as the Diamonds will be without 5 of their more senior players. Four of the players (Sharelle McMahon, Catherine Cox, Julie Corletto and Susan Fuhrmann) are recovering from either knee or ankle surgery. Despite their lack of international experience, Plummer is confident the youngsters she’s chosen can deliver the goods, even against a more seasoned England team with the likes of Geva Mentor, Sonia Mkoloma, Karen Atkinson and Pamela Cookey in its line-up. Players for both the home sides already have a number of Superleague games under their belt and should be more used to the rigours of elite netball than their Australian counterparts at this stage.

Not only are the Tests crucial preparation for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October but there also valuable world ranking points at stake. Scotland are currently ranked 13^th and will obviously be hoping to improve on that and Australia currently have a tight grip on the no. 1 spot. England are ranked 3^rd, but increasingly showing signs they can finally break the stranglehold the antipodean netball teams have on the no. 1 position.

Sue Hawkins’ England team will no doubt go in to these Tests with a measure of confidence that they know how to handle the Aussies. They beat both the Diamonds & the Silver Ferns in the opening rounds of the World Netball Series last October and many of England’s players have had a taste of netball Southern-hemisphere style as they competed for teams in the last ANZ Championships, with Mentor and Mkoloma particularly, proving their worth. As part of a successful World 7 team, they played against the Ferns and the Diamonds back in August last year and showed that they can shut down the world’s best shooters.

Scotland’s national squad is comprised of players mainly from the Glasgow Wildcats Superleague team and both are coached by Denise Holland. The Wildcats are having a tough time this season and have yet to secure a victory in the Superleague. International competition will be even more intense and it’s safe to say that the Scots will have a harder time against the Diamonds than England will.

With so many jewels missing from her crown, will Norma’s new Diamonds get the chance to sparkle?