England worked hard against a spirited Tonga side to take a 72-46 win; all games will be live on Sky Sports from July 28 to August 6, with one game per day available on the Sky Sports YouTube channel
England were up against tough opponents but made it four wins from four as they continued their run in the Netball World Cup
England battled hard to secure a 72-46 victory over Tonga in their first match of the second stage of the Netball World Cup.
Funmi Fadoju and Eleanor Cardwell were added back into the starting line-up after coming off the bench against Scotland, the goal shooter immediately making her mark as England battled hard.
However, the end of the first quarter saw Tonga battle back to leave England with a less than comfortable 19-14 lead.
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Cardwell and Helen Housby traded positions up front in the circle for the second quarter and England got firing, increasing their lead to 38-22 by the half-time break in an intriguing and physical contest.
There was a rare toss-up in the Netball World Cup match between Tonga and England
Layla Guscoth and Jade Clark then entered the fray in the third quarter and it was a much tighter 15 minutes but England showed their class to get into a 54-36 lead with one quarter to play.
England pushed hard in the final quarter as Tonga’s physicality continued to work them hard, sealing a 72-46 victory.
Olivia Tchine with an incredible shot on one foot, with the ball looking to be lost!
Elsewhere, Australia defeated Scotland 76-37, with the Silver Ferns defeating Wales 83-34. Jamaica also ran out 61-49 winners against Uganda and hosts South Africa won 69-28 against Trinidad & Tobago.
Metcalf: We had to build throughout the game
Nat Metcalfe speaks on England’s performance, following a solid 72-46 win over Tonga
England co-captain Nat Metcalf…
“We know Tonga are a great side and we knew it was important to build our lead as the game progressed.
“We wanted to just look after the ball and make sure we were scoring off the given possession.
“Fifty per cent of the time we get the ball in our hands so we needed to look after that and make sure it got through to goal.”
