Today was the first day of the tournament ini Sydney, and it threw up very few surprises.
The big hitters – Australia, England, Jamaica and New Zealand – all recorded comfortable wins at the AllPhones Arena.
Scotland – ever the physical team – were plucky and worked hard but they were no match to England’s power and skill.
Manchester City’s Toni Duggan said in a recent interview that the England Lionesses had more ‘passion’ when playing for their country, compared to their male counterparts.
And over the past year or so, we’ve seen that passion run through the national women’s rugby team and now the England Roses netball team.
The Roses may have lacked some of that passion during the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last August especially as their tournament petered out to a flat and disappointing conclusion, but coach Neville has brought it back with a bite since she stepped into the fold earlier this year.
England’s performance may well have been a little flat, with the Scottish physicality restricting their usual free-flowing attacking style, but the defence was solid. This was proven even more so with England finishing the day conceding the least goals of the 16 teams on show in Olympic Park.
But the day was to be tinged with sadness for everyone involved with England Netball.
There was a feeling of shock among fans as the news trickled through that Neville Neville, Tracey’s dad, had died.
Neville had travelled out to Australia to support his daughter on her debut World Cup as coach.
The news broke just hours after England’s victory and supporters expressed their sadness for the Neville family, especially Tracey, who left the venue straight after the 60-19 win, to be with her family.
Next up for England is Jamaica on Saturday, where the Roses will hope to avenge their disappointing loss to the Sunshine Girls in the bronze medal match in Glasgow.
The big hitters – Australia, England, Jamaica and New Zealand – all recorded comfortable wins at the AllPhones Arena.
Scotland – ever the physical team – were plucky and worked hard but they were no match to England’s power and skill.
Manchester City’s Toni Duggan said in a recent interview that the England Lionesses had more ‘passion’ when playing for their country, compared to their male counterparts.
And over the past year or so, we’ve seen that passion run through the national women’s rugby team and now the England Roses netball team.
The Roses may have lacked some of that passion during the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last August especially as their tournament petered out to a flat and disappointing conclusion, but coach Neville has brought it back with a bite since she stepped into the fold earlier this year.
England’s performance may well have been a little flat, with the Scottish physicality restricting their usual free-flowing attacking style, but the defence was solid. This was proven even more so with England finishing the day conceding the least goals of the 16 teams on show in Olympic Park.
But the day was to be tinged with sadness for everyone involved with England Netball.
There was a feeling of shock among fans as the news trickled through that Neville Neville, Tracey’s dad, had died.
Neville had travelled out to Australia to support his daughter on her debut World Cup as coach.
The news broke just hours after England’s victory and supporters expressed their sadness for the Neville family, especially Tracey, who left the venue straight after the 60-19 win, to be with her family.
Next up for England is Jamaica on Saturday, where the Roses will hope to avenge their disappointing loss to the Sunshine Girls in the bronze medal match in Glasgow.