Soon after Australia's series-opening Constellation Cup win over New Zealand on Thursday to banish the demons of Invercargill from last month, the Diamonds came together and pledged to be even better in Christchurch on Sunday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Rarely does this star-studded Diamonds side put together two poor performances in a row, and so it was the case on Thursday as Australia held off a fast-finishing Silver Ferns for a 57-54 win.
Captain Caitlin Bassett was back to her dominant self, draining 39 goals from 43 shots after young New Zealand defender Kelly Jury blanketed her in the 10-point Quad Series defeat in September.
She was well supported by Susan Pettitt and Steph Wood in the goal circle, both of who are looking to press their Commonwealth Games credentials during the Constellation Cup.
"That goal attack position is hotly contested and it's going to create quite a headache for the selectors coming into next season and for Commonwealth Games," Bassett said.
"Everyone's putting their hand up at the moment. They both offer such different things, Pratts [Pettitt] is very experienced and she's that cool calm head and Steph has that speed and a little bit more flair.
"She's still gaining experience on the international stage, that's exciting being out there next to both of them.
"Whether we have a win or a loss, we always want to perform better or do better than the last time we stepped out on court.
"We weren't pleased about that Quad Series game, it was very uncharacteristic of us, we wasted a lot of ball and the defenders got a bit caught on the body.
"We need to learn that regardless of whether we win or lose, we need to come out with that energy that we always want to improve."
That game in Invercargill was Bassett's first loss since taking on the Diamonds captaincy earlier this year, and she was determined to bounce back on Thursday against prodigious Silver Ferns goal keeper Jury.
The Australian sharpshooter was stifled last month by Jury and unable to exert her usual dominance under the ring, but she won the battle in the Constellation Cup opener leading to Jury's substitution late in the first half.
"Kelly started and came off three quarters of the way through the second quarter, it was good to get out there again against her and fix some of the mistakes of the things I wasn't happy about last time we played the Ferns," Bassett said.
"We played into her hands [in the Quad Series]. We weren't smart about placing the ball, and she's got long hands and long arms with a big reach.
"When you're playing against a player like her you can't just do the things that I've had the luxury of doing for most of my career which is just standing and posting up and getting that nice high ball.
"It's just about mixing it up, improving that ball feed and moving her around the body."
