Coach Dame Noeline Taurua has defended her decision to inject rookie shooter Grace Nweke into the Silver Ferns line-up at a critical stage of the second test loss against England on Wednesday.
With the contest in the balance entering the second half, Dame Noeline called on the 19-year-old Northern Mystics star to take the court for her highly anticipated debut.
Paired with the relative inexperience of Tiana Metuarau at goal attack and Peta Toeava at wing defence, Nweke struggled to find her range, as England - courtesy of counterpart George Fisher - took the game in its grasp to record a comfortable 55-45 win and send the Taini Jamison Trophy series to a decisive game three on Friday.
Nweke was part of a quartet of Aucklanders granted an exemption to join the team in Christchurch only late last week, and going straight into the cauldron of international netball proved an understandably steep challenge.
But with the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham looming in July, Dame Noeline said it was important to use these opportunities to get a glimpse of her new talent in the test arena.
"I know what it feels like," Dame Noeline said. "We've been there, done that, and unfortunately the only way you can learn is through the good times and the bad.
"This is definitely a massive learning curve not only for [Nweke], but also others as well within our team, so that's how it goes."
The coach stressed the importance of using these tests to develop and discover new combinations, which she said can often come at the expense of victory.
"Obviously we go for a win, but if someone can tell me what my strongest line is I'll be really happy about that because I feel like I've got quite a few [options]," she said.
"I've got to be really objective and not emotional and stay focussed about what our long-term goal is, but also the opportunities that present and unfortunately sometimes you might only get one [opportunity]."
The Ferns were playing without star midcourter Gina Crampton, who succumbed to a hip abductor strain after the first-test win on Monday, and Dame Noeline said there's no certainty she'll be available for Friday's third test.
Adding to their injury woes was the loss of rookie revelation Metuarau, who suffered a strain in the second half, after another impressive display in her sophomore outing in the black dress. It's still unclear what the severity of the injury is.
On the other side of the ledger, England coach Jess Thirby was full of praise for her side, singling her players' defensive effort as the driving force behind their bounce-back win.
"I think we got more ball than them and I think it's been a long time since a Roses team has won more ball than the Silver Ferns, because we've normally got quite schooled on that defence," said Thirlby.
"This was the next level for us. Psychologically, we needed the win.
"I think the group are brilliant in terms of building each other up and supporting each other, but sometimes you just get to a point on the journey where you need to take a few scalps and we value this one in its own right."
Join us at 7pm, Friday for live updates of the third test of the Taini Jamison Trophy between the Silver Ferns and England
