Netball: Sudden-death delight for Australia

Australia retained their Commonwealth Games crown with a memorable 57-55 sudden-death extra-time victory over New Zealand at the MEN Arena yesterday.

The Antipodean rivals were locked together at 46-46 at the end of normal time, and 14 minutes of extra-time ended with the sides still level at 55-55. That sent the contest into sudden death and Australia's goal attack, Sharelle McMahon, came back to haunt the Silver Ferns for the second major final in a row.

McMahon, who scored the winning goal 20 seconds from the end of the 1999 World Championships final, netted again to give her side the two-goal gap needed to win gold.

But New Zealand should have won in normal time because they led by three goals with less than 10 minutes to play and still held a two-point lead with under two minutes on the clock. But Catherine Cox netted a magnificent long-range goal 20 seconds from time to set up the grandstand finish Australian fans are becoming accustomed to.

A run of three unanswered points three minutes from time gave Jamaica a 55-53 win over England in the bronze medal play-off. England's players were inconsolable after a match that had swung first one way, then the other.

"Well done to Jamaica, because they played well," said England's performance director Wai Taumaunu. "But we're devastated not to get a medal. The players are very disappointed, because losing like that is hard to take."

The Caribbean side led by one point going into the final quarter after England had rallied superbly to close a four-point deficit. The two sides then proceeded to trade points before England took control when the Australia-born Abby Teare netted from long range to put her side 50-49 ahead with less than five minutes to go.

But the goal shooter Elaine Davis held her nerve to pull Jamaica clear and they withstood intense late English pressure to record only their 14th win over the host nation.

England had a late chance to level, but stand-in centre Karen Aspinall overthrew her pass to Alex Astle and Jamaica swept down the other end to seal victory.

Jamaica's coach, Maureen Hall, was especially proud of her players' ability to shut out a raucous capacity crowd. "Our concentration was fan-tastic and we managed to play our game and forget about everything else," she said.