Australia crumble under pressure to seal Constellation Cup capitulation to New Zealand

Silver Ferns defeat Diamonds 49-52 in Game 3 in SydneyAustralia lose series for fourth time since inception in 2010Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich was left to lament Australia’s capitulation on home soil after New Zealand claimed the Constellation Cup series with a game to spare.With a two-goal lead at three-quarter time, the Diamonds crumbled under pressure and lost 52-49 to the Silver Ferns at Sydney’s Afterpay Arena on Sunday. Continue reading…

Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich was left to lament Australia’s capitulation on home soil after New Zealand claimed the Constellation Cup series with a game to spare Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich was left to lament Australia’s capitulation on home soil after New Zealand claimed the Constellation Cup series with a game to spare. With a two-goal lead at three-quarter time, the Diamonds crumbled under pressure and lost 52-49 to the Silver Ferns at Sydney’s Afterpay Arena on Sunday. Australia lose the series for the fourth time since the two countries began competing for the trophy in 2010, and they have done so ahead of Wednesday’s final game in Melbourne.

And Commonwealth Games gold medallists New Zealand are far from satisfied, eyeing a 4-0 sweep to dethrone Australia for the world No 1 ranking. In a tight and physical final quarter, the Diamonds gave away 23 penalties to New Zealand’s nine. “We got a couple of hands in that could have flipped our way but unfortunately didn’t,” Marinkovich said. “If there’s dangerous play, the umpires call that. When the ball’s going up in the air, you can’t just stand there