Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua claims her side were too timid and took a backwards step, despite beating England Roses in the Taini Jamison Trophy opener.
In their first test match since January, the Ferns led from start to finish against an understrength English side, claiming a 58-45 win in Hamilton.
While Taurua is happy with the margin of victory, she's frustrated with her side's performance, claiming they lacked the fight seen days before against the men.
After claiming a historic win over their male counterparts, Taurua was pleased with the Ferns' progression and confident they'd carry that momentum into the England series.
But after a scrappy showing, she feels they've gone backwards.
"The scoreboard is good, our numbers were good, but personally - and in my role - I feel there's room for improvement," says Taurua.
"I felt we were a bit timid and it wasn't until the fourth quarter, where we let the ball go, that we actually got any momentum.
"Structurally, we weren't as good as when we played against the men. We probably took a backward step in the quality of the match and there were lots of basic errors.
"In saying that, this is maybe where we start from. I was expecting we would just roll on from where we left off with the [quad series].
"We've gone two steps back in my eyes and maybe this is the starting point for us."
The Ferns headed into the match as favourites, after playing more netball over recent months, compared to their rivals.
New Zealand's players have competed in a domestic season, and last week contested a build-up series against NZ A, NZ U21 and NZ Men.
By contrast, England are without several stars and their players haven't taken the court since March - some even longer - while coach Jess Thirlby tested positive for COVID-19 and was forced to stay home.
Despite being on the wrong side of the scoreboard, England seem much happier with their performance, but they were just over the moon to be back on court.
"We've been waiting for any netball for over seven months and to play that in front of a crowd was amazing," says Roses co-captain Laura Malcolm. "It's a real pride to play that, not only for netball, but women in sport.
"I can't believe we're here. There were so many questions behind the scenes and it's all pulled together, and that's a huge credit to NZ and England netball, along with the Government.
"This is way bigger than netball. Everyone is proud to be here."
Victory in Friday's second test, also in Hamilton, would see the Silver Ferns reclaim the Taini Jamison Trophy, after losing to Jamaica as part of their 2018 Commonwealth Games preparation.
Join us for live updates of the second test between the Silver Ferns and England from 7:30pm Friday.
