App users click here for latest updates
Silver Ferns 59 Aotearoa Men 58
Fulltime
NZ - Nweke 30/36, Metuarau 17/21, Wilson 12/16
Men - Geldard 45/45, Jeffries 13/16
Fourth quarter
15th minute - Saunders finds Metuarau cutting along the baseline and she goals, FERNS 59-58
Big turnover by the men and Saunders barely saves the ball from bouncing out of bounds. The siren goes - it seems five seconds early - but the Ferns have wrapped up the series win.
13th minute - Metuarau slots a long-range shot to regain advantage for the Ferns.
Who will blink first? It's not Metuarau, FERNS 57-56
Geldard pulls in a pass on his finger tips, but Nweke is safe at the other end, FERNS 58-57
11th minute - Saunders finds Metuarau cutting across the circle to score, FERNS 55-54
The men lost possession at the attack end and any mistake could prove costly now. They regain possession, but Jury cuts off a long pass.
Godsmark-White saves the men again...
Ninth minute - Incredible defence from Godsmark-White gives the men a chance to bridge the gap... Geldard obliges, 53-53
Nweke outleaps her marker to score, FERNS 54-53
Seventh minute - Saunders gets caught in possession and the men have a chance to make a run...
Geldard has another goal and the men have centrepass, but Burger bustles Geldard off the ball.
Metuarau finds Nweke under goal, FERNS 53-50
Fifth minute - Finally, the Ferns defenders get the tip they've been chasing, but the attack can't take advantage of that hard work.
Next time down the court, Burger forces another mistake and Metuarau converts this time, FERNS 51-49
Third minute - Tana lobs high and long to Geldard, and no-one can cut that off, 47-47
Tana tries that again and Jury almost tips it away, but not quite, 48-48
The Ferns defence are scrambling, with Gordon, Burger and Jury almost stealing the ball.
First minute - No changes for the Ferns to start the final quarter. Jury squashes Geldard into the goalpost, but he steadies himself and draws even, 46-46
Third quarter
Geldard still perfect (37/37), but Ferns win that quarter 18-16. Burger was the big difference, with her defence.
15th minute - Geldard slots another goal to level scores and then another to put them ahead again, MEN 45-44
Burger has another steal - she's a menace - but the Ferns need to work quickly to take full advantage. Metuarau slots a goal to edge ahead, FERNS 46-45
Nweke has lost her composure and misses another sitter as the quarter ends. That may come back to haunt her...
13th minute - Metuarau slots another and the lead is two goals, FERNS 44-42
Metuarau and Nweke take turns missing sitters, and the men come away with the ball again.
11th minute - Nice interplay between Metuarau and Saunders leaves the latter open on the edge of the circle, and she finds Nweke under goal. Burger steals the ball and Nweke puts the Ferns ahead.
Ninth minute - Goal for goal, but Burger almost steals a floating midcourt pass.
Saunders finds Metuarau cutting across the circle, 40-40
Seventh minute - Shannon Saunders is also out on court for Crampton. Nweke misses three times, but snatches the rebounds each time and finally scores, 37-37
Fifth minute - Kersten steals the ball and the Ferns are back within a goal, MEN 34-33
Metuarau slots her first attempt to bring the Ferns even, but Jeffries regains the lead at the other end, MEN 35-34
Third minute - Geldard stretched the lead to three, but Nweke shows confidence in her mid-range shot, MEN 33-31
Gordon is cautioned by the umpire for offside - next time is a warning.
First minute - For the third straight quarter, the men have forced the Ferns into an error from the centrepass. Tiana Metuarau is on at goal attack for Wilson.
Second quarter
Men outscored the Ferns 16-11 in that quarter, Geldard is still shooting perfectly (24/24).
15th minute - Ferns blow their chance, with Wilson missing and then getting caught holding the ball too long.
Geldard remains perfect under goal, MEN 29-27
Wilson pulls one back before the quarter ends, MEN 29-28
13th minute - Goal for goal right now, as Jeffires slots another baseline shot, MEN 28-26
Ferns force an error and can retake the momentum here...
11th minute - Nweke grabs a rebond and flicks it back to Wilson as she falls out of bounds, FERNS 24-23
Wilson tries to disguise a pass as a shot, but it's deflected by the men's defence and Jeffries puts them in front, MEN 26-24
Ninth minute - Gordon finds Wilson rolling across the circle, FERNS 22-19
Wilson breaks again at the centrepass and the men have a chance here, Jeffries scores, FERNS 22-21
Geldard grabs an offensive rebound to score and draw even, but great interplay between Wilson and Gordon gives the Ferns another lead, FERNS 23-22
Seventh minute - Men miss a chance to draw even, when they turn the ball over in the attacking third. Wilson scores at the other end, with centrepass to come, FERNS 20-18
A long pass to Geldard brings the score back to two.
Fifth minute - Wilson tries to fling a touch pass to Nweke under goal, but it glances off her hand and the men have a chance to draw even.
Ferns earn a turnover before any damage can be done, but another pass flies beyond Nweke's reach. Jury just can't pull in another tip, FERNS 19-18
Third minute - Gordon lobs to Nweke under goal and she stretches the lead, FERNS 18-15
First minute - Gordon has centrepass again, but Ferns turn the ball over immediately and the men get a goal back, FERNS 17-14
Junior Tana has come on at wing attack for the men.
First Quarter
Excellent shooting from both teams - the Men have missed one shot, while the Ferns have missed just two, but enjoy an edge in chances. Nweke and Geldard are both perfect 11/11.
15th minute - Grimmer has the ball slip from his grasp and the Ferns can open up a sizeable advantage here, as the quarter winds down.
Geldard brings a goal back, as the quarter ends, FERNS 17-13
14th minute - Another long pass from Gordon to Nweke, Wilson is drawing her defender out of the circle and opening space underneath, FERNS 15-12
13th minute - Wilson tries a bounce pass back to her circle feeder, but it's cut off by the men, who can bow bring the score back their way. They turn over again though and Nweke scores, FERNS 13-10
Crampton spots Nweke open under goal and she scores, FERNS 14-11
11th minute - Ferns score their fifth in a row, before Geldard breaks the streak, FERNS 10-8
Wilson fakes a shot and pops a pass to Nweke under goal, she scores, FERNS 12-9
Ninth minute - Maddy Gordon steals the ball in midcourt and Wilson slots a long-range goal to draw even, 7-7
From the centrepass, Wilson is on target again to regain the lead for the Ferns. Another turnover gives them a chance to stretch their lead and Nweke takes advantage, FERNS 9-7
Seventh minute - Wilson breaks off the centrepass, giving the men a chance to regain the lead. Geldard extends the lead to two, MEN 6-4
Jury narrowly misses a defensive tip and the men are back out to two goals, MEN 7-5
Fifth minute - Nweke puts the Ferns ahead for the first time, but Geldard draws level. Nweke is sure under goal, FERNS 4-3
Third minute - Nweke opens the scoring for the Ferns and they force a turnover at the defensive end, but immediately give it back. A lot of whistle already.
Wilson misses her first shot, but Ferns have the inbounds pass. She makes her second, 2-2
First minute - Maddy Gordon has first centrepass, but the Ferns attack turn the ball over. Jeffries opens the scoring, MEN 1-0
6:52pm - Coach Dame Noeline Taurua has promoted Grace Nweke into the starting line-up at goal shoot, with Maia Wilson playing alongside her in the attack circle.
Aotearoa Men will field the same combination that began Sunday's encounter so strongly.
Ferns: GS Grace Nweke, GA Maia Wilson, WA Gina Crampton, C Maddy Gordon, WD Claire Kersten, GD Kerin Burger, GK Kelly Jury
Men: GS Jay Geldard, GA Daniel Jeffries, WA Eriata Vercoe, C Nick Grimmer, WD Tyrah Lauagiagi, GD Jaryn Tainui, GK Victor Godsmark-White
*****
Kia ora, good evening and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the second encounter between the Silver Ferns and Aotearoa Men at Wellington's ASB Arena.
After taking out the opening encounter on Sunday, the NZ women are in prime position to seal victory in the three-game series against their bigger, more athletic opposition, whose fitness was found wanting over the final three quarters.
The men began strongly and led by seven goals after the opening quarter, but the contest swung dramatically the other way, as the Ferns capitalised on superior possession to attempt 20 more shots then their opponents in the second period and draw level 24-24 at halftime.
With teenager Grace Nweke imposing herself under the goal, the Ferns were able to wear the men down to finish 58-47 ahead.
With several of their roster stranded by COVID-19 lockdowns in Auckland and Waikato, the men probably lacked continuity to compete with a team that had been together for two weeks already, so they will likely be better for the run and determined to make up for their collapse 24 hours earlier.
The only change to the Ferns squad for tonight's return match sees attacker Tiana Metuarau replace Te Paea Selby-Rickit, who suffered a horror shooting night in her starting role on Sunday.
Midcourt Sam Winders continues to nurse a back strain, with rookie Kate Heffernan given her first gametime in the black dress in the opener.
Shooters: Jamie Hume, Tiana Metuarau, Grace Nweke, Maia Wilson
Midcourters: Gina Crampton (c), Maddy Gordon, Kate Heffernan, Claire Kersten, Shannon Saunders
Defenders: Karin Burger, Kelly Jury, Georgia Tong
TAB Odds: Silver Ferns $1.55, Aotearoa Men $2.30
'We can improve': Taurua demands more from Ferns after win over Aotearoa Men
Despite the first-up victory in their series opener over Aotearoa Men, Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua insists her side have to improve.
With the Constellation Cup postponed due to COVID-19, the Silver Ferns are lining up to face Aotearoa Men three times over as many days in Wellington, for their final scheduled matches before next year's Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
But with some of their key players missing, the Ferns overcame a slow start on Sunday, defeating Aotearoa Men 58-47 in game one, giving Dame Noeline's side two chances to wrap up the series.
Even in victory, Dame Noeline insists her side must improve, if they're to mount a credible challenge at the Commonwealth Games, after finishing out of the medals at Gold Coast 2018, under coach Janine Southby.
"I think there're areas we know that we can improve on," Dame Noeline says. "I think it is good to get the win, but we know that it's about ourselves and the execution, the strategy, but also our preparation going into [the] Commonwealth Games.
"So [it's] good to get out there, but also some clear patterns I think that we need to properly address, and try and work on."
But that window for improvement is small - 24 hours to be exact - with both sides meeting again on Monday.
The tight turnaround is welcomed by the Ferns, replicating the conditions they'll face in tournaments like the Commonwealth Games and forcing them to learn on the fly.
"With us in our environment, it's a lot of repetition of doing exactly the same thing.
"We'll go back once again and look at the video, talk through with individuals, see what we possibly can do, but this is probably the scenario that we work on when we go into a Commonwealth Games or a World [Cup], when we go back-to-back-to-back.
"If anything, it's really good for us to experience this stuff, so that we get into our routines, so that we can review and get ourselves ready for the next day."
Despite the emphasis on improvement, Dame Noeline took time to recognise the quality among her ranks.
Fresh from her debut against England Roses last month, Grace Nweke, 19, produced her best performance in the black dress, shooting 39 from 44 attempts, as the Ferns' leading scorer on the night.
Captain Gina Crampton was also a welcome returnee, after missing the end of the England series with an adductor injury, with the Ferns slipping to a 2-1 loss in her absence.
"Grace had a great game out there," says Taurua. "[She] was really stable and very strong underneath the men.
"Gigi [Crampton] played a really good game too. She's been off last time in regards to having a wee bit of a strain.
"Her introduction back out on court provided us [with] the leadership. There were times that we did do some really good things.
"The last maybe eight minutes, there was some beautiful execution, but sometimes it takes a long time, so we've got to be prepared to do the grind at the beginning.
"And sometimes it does open when it does, I thought that was really pleasing."
