New Zealand hold off England to reach Netball World Cup final

• England 45-47 New Zealand • England slip to defeat after leading 24-21 at half-time Call it karma. Less than a week after England stole a World Cup from under the careful moustaches of New Zealand’s cricketers, the Silver Ferns took a measure of revenge for their menfolk. They beat the Roses by just two goals in a nerve shredder that denied Tracey Neville’s women their first Netball World Cup final – and indeed, their best ever shot at the trophy. Neville blamed “basic errors” for the 47-45 defeat and the captain, Serena Guthrie, denied the emotion of a home semi-final had got to the players. “That has nothing to do with our performance today,” said Guthrie. “We had two teams going against each other with different tactics and we didn’t execute well enough.” Continue reading...