Netball: Dame Noeline Taurua teases announcement on Silver Ferns coaching future

The dust had barely settled on the Silver Ferns' final match at the Nations Cup in Leeds, when discussion quickly shifted to Dame Noeline Taurua's future as head coach.

On Monday, the Ferns held off Uganda for the second time at the competition to clinch third place at the tournament. Australia later crushed England in the final to seal the title.

With her original contract expiring at the end of October, Dame Noeline signed a mini-extension to remain with the team until the end of the team's campaign in England, buying herself some time to make a decision on her long-term outlook with the team.

Speaking immediately after Monday's win over Uganda, Dame Noeline wasn't ready to commit either way but insists an announcement is imminent.

"I'm still not sure," Dame Noeline told Newshub.

"I'm really, really glad this tournament is over if I'm honest, so I can get into that space [to make a decision].

"There's a bit of a process. We go through a review like we always do.  

"I feel my role here is as sort of a guardian of the Silver Ferns. I don't own it, so I'll do what's right for the Silver Ferns.

"I really don't know but I'm happy that I'm now in the space.

"We get home on [January] 31st so hopefully by the first week of February I'll be into that and seeing what the next step will be."

Taurua had been vocal about her intent to use the competition to develop some of her young talent and there was plenty for her to smile about in the performance she saw from the likes of debutants Georgia Heffernan, Amorangi Malesala and Tayla Earle.

Grace Nweke continued her emergence as one of netball's premier talents and could become the ideal centerpiece for Dame Noeline to build around through the next Commonwealth Games and world championships cycle.

"There's amazing talent and potential in this current squad and when you think of the next four years of what that would look like it's awesome."

That said, Taurua is adamant that the team's efforts in England won't be among the primary factors influencing her final decision.

"I don't think it's about this as such," she said.  

"We've got a new breed of players coming through – am I the right person or fit for these current crop of players? Do I connect or not?  

"Those are probably the main things that are in my mind at the moment, as well as obviously the [futures] pathways."

Taurua added any potential new contract would only run until 2026, which wouldn't encompass the next World Cup to be held in Australia in 2027.

The pair of wins over the rapidly improving She Cranes were the only two NZ victories of the Nations Cup, combining with losses to World Cup finalists England and Australia for a 50 percent success rate overall.

Results aside, there was plenty to be encouraged by in their outings against the World Cup finalists. Inexperience perhaps came back to bite them in a fourth quarter capitulation to the Diamonds, while the outcome against the English may have been different if not for an errant pass in the dying seconds.

Alongside their efforts against Australia during October's Constellation Cup – where they split the series two games apiece, but ultimately lose the series to the holders – perhaps the arrow is beginning to trend upwards, after their historically abysmal World Cup campaign in South Africa.

While there were some familiar undesirable trends over the past week in Leeds, Taurua is confident the team is bridging the gap.  

"This group has grown massively," she said. We had 150 caps less than England in yesterday's game and really pushed that game to the wire. Our ability to back up from one game to another is still a bit of a work-on and our ability to close the door when we need to is still a work-on."

"Basic turnovers that's something that's really costly, yesterday against England we had 23 turnovers and you can't do that.

"We're nearly close to the likes of England and Australia but still far but we are ticking along and that's really pleasing."

"When we go back to the ANZ [Premiership] that's a place where we can improve ...the system in itself needs to see what we can do in regards to the development and growth and raise the intensity. That's probably putting more expectation on the players as well to lead their own programme.  

"When it comes down to it it's about skill-sets, our ability to secure the ball under pressure and deliver it as well. We do that in spasms but consistency-wise we're not that good."

The dust had barely settled on the Silver Ferns' final match at the Nations Cup in Leeds, when discussion quickly shifted to Dame Noeline Taurua's future as head coach.

On Monday, the Ferns held off Uganda for the second time at the competition to clinch third place at the tournament. Australia later crushed England in the final to seal the title.

With her original contract expiring at the end of October, Dame Noeline signed a mini-extension to remain with the team until the end of the team's campaign in England, buying herself some time to make a decision on her long-term outlook with the team.

Speaking immediately after Monday's win over Uganda, Dame Noeline wasn't ready to commit either way but insists an announcement is imminent.

"I'm still not sure," Dame Noeline told Newshub.

"I'm really, really glad this tournament is over if I'm honest, so I can get into that space [to make a decision].

"There's a bit of a process. We go through a review like we always do.  

"I feel my role here is as sort of a guardian of the Silver Ferns. I don't own it, so I'll do what's right for the Silver Ferns.

"I really don't know but I'm happy that I'm now in the space.

"We get home on [January] 31st so hopefully by the first week of February I'll be into that and seeing what the next step will be."

Taurua had been vocal about her intent to use the competition to develop some of her young talent and there was plenty for her to smile about in the performance she saw from the likes of debutants Georgia Heffernan, Amorangi Malesala and Tayla Earle.

Grace Nweke continued her emergence as one of netball's premier talents and could become the ideal centerpiece for Dame Noeline to build around through the next Commonwealth Games and world championships cycle.

"There's amazing talent and potential in this current squad and when you think of the next four years of what that would look like it's awesome."

That said, Taurua is adamant that the team's efforts in England won't be among the primary factors influencing her final decision.

"I don't think it's about this as such," she said.  

"We've got a new breed of players coming through – am I the right person or fit for these current crop of players? Do I connect or not?  

"Those are probably the main things that are in my mind at the moment, as well as obviously the [futures] pathways."

Taurua added any potential new contract would only run until 2026, which wouldn't encompass the next World Cup to be held in Australia in 2027.

The pair of wins over the rapidly improving She Cranes were the only two NZ victories of the Nations Cup, combining with losses to World Cup finalists England and Australia for a 50 percent success rate overall.

Results aside, there was plenty to be encouraged by in their outings against the World Cup finalists. Inexperience perhaps came back to bite them in a fourth quarter capitulation to the Diamonds, while the outcome against the English may have been different if not for an errant pass in the dying seconds.

Alongside their efforts against Australia during October's Constellation Cup – where they split the series two games apiece, but ultimately lose the series to the holders – perhaps the arrow is beginning to trend upwards, after their historically abysmal World Cup campaign in South Africa.

While there were some familiar undesirable trends over the past week in Leeds, Taurua is confident the team is bridging the gap.  

"This group has grown massively," she said. We had 150 caps less than England in yesterday's game and really pushed that game to the wire. Our ability to back up from one game to another is still a bit of a work-on and our ability to close the door when we need to is still a work-on."

"Basic turnovers that's something that's really costly, yesterday against England we had 23 turnovers and you can't do that.

"We're nearly close to the likes of England and Australia but still far but we are ticking along and that's really pleasing."

"When we go back to the ANZ [Premiership] that's a place where we can improve ...the system in itself needs to see what we can do in regards to the development and growth and raise the intensity. That's probably putting more expectation on the players as well to lead their own programme.  

"When it comes down to it it's about skill-sets, our ability to secure the ball under pressure and deliver it as well. We do that in spasms but consistency-wise we're not that good."

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