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Irene van Dyk - Source: Photosport -
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It was a simple enough question and one Silver Ferns coach Waimarama Taumaunu must have known was coming.
Is goal shoot Irene van Dyk going to start tomorrow's deciding Constellation Cup series test, at Melbourne's Hisense Arena?
Taumaunu sat the 201-test veteran for all of Wednesday night's 51-44 loss to Australia, in Adelaide, preferring to give Cathrine Latu her first taste of trans-Tasman netball instead.
Assuming the coach knows the answer to the van Dyk question, it took her a long time to arrive at it yesterday.
"Um, I don't usually make that decision till the day of the test but in this case it'll probably be the night before," Taumaunu said.
"Simply because I need to see what they're looking like health-wise, how they've recovered from travel and all that sort of stuff.
"Having played Cat [Latu] for a whole hour [in Adelaide] we've now got the choice of two shooters who have acquitted themselves very well against Australia, so I'll make that call.
"It's likely. I think we're in a slightly better situation than we were," she finished.
Blink and you would have missed it. But, yes, an answer was in there somewhere.
So it is "likely" that van Dyk will play and, therefore, that New Zealand will begin with their seven best players for the fifth and final test of this series.
Clearly though, Taumaunu is in two minds about tomorrow.
She readily agreed that the result of this series was of little consequence, with her goals for the Silver Ferns all based around retaining their Commonwealth Games crown in three years' time and then winning the 2015 world champs.
Only, neither of those will happen if a winning habit against Australia isn't established as well.
Welcome to the dilemma every Silver Ferns head coach faces, Wai.
"As a team we need to practice, when we get a lead, stamping our authority on the game," she said.
"There are lots of things we need to practice which also have a long-term focus. So the ability to get people on the court and have people who've played against Australia in stressful situations is important.
"But the ability for this team to get a lead, hold a lead, and really drive themselves forward is another lesson we have to learn and we can only do that against Australia. The other teams just don't put that sort of stress on us."
That stress was evident in this week's matches in Perth and Adelaide.
Having raced out of the blocks and played netball of a far superior quality to Australia's, the Silver Ferns have then wilted.
In Perth they hung on, to win by a goal.
But in Adelaide the towel basically got chucked in.
How they line up
What: Constellation Cup Netball
Who: New Zealand v Australia
When and where: 4.15pm tomorrow, Hisense Arena,
Melbourne
TV: Sky Sport 1, from 4pm
New Zealand: Laura Langman, Kayla Cullen, Leana de Bruin, Paula Griffin, Joline Henry, Cathrine Latu, Liana Leota, Anna Scarlett, Anna Thompson, Sulu Tone-Fitzpatrick, Maria Tutaia, Irene van Dyk
Australia: Catherine Cox, Erin Bell, Rebecca Bulley, Madison Browne, Julie Corletto, Laura Geitz, Mo'onia Gerrard, Kimberlee Green, Caitlin Bassett, Sharni Layton, Susan Fuhrmann, Natalie Medhurst
Series score: 2-2
Matches: Aus 52 NZ 47 (Palmerston North), NZ 45
Aus 42 (Auckland), NZ 49 Aus 48 (Perth), Aus 51 NZ 44
(Adelaide)
Key matchups:
This contest was all Tutaia's in Perth, with Corletto slowed by a corked thigh. The Diamonds goal defence was dominant in Adelaide, though, upsetting New Zealand's feeds into the circle and giving Tutaia no easy shots.
If Irene van Dyk plays for the Ferns then Corletto will have to do more than just sit on Tutaia.
The pocket rockets have had a great duel so far. Quick, competitive and occasionally quite vocal, the winner of this battle should also secure her team the series.
After the disappointment of Adelaide, Langman is determined to make sure the Silver Ferns are much tidier through court.
A huge amount depends on Leota. Good early, she hasn't been as accurate as these games have gone on.
That's not easy with Gerrard always in your face, or pushing you out of court. As she did to Leota in Perth. Leota needs to give a bit back tomorrow.
This hasn't proved a fair fight so far. Alexander has so many options at her disposal and when Taumaunu tinkered in Adelaide her team's own lack of depth was exposed.
The lineup Taumaunu goes with will tell us if this is a development series or one the Silver Ferns want to win at all costs.
