‘It is a big achievement’ Sunshine Girls aim to improve after silver-medal finish at Commonwealth Game

Despite falling short in their quest for a first-ever Commonwealth Games gold medal, head coach of Jamaica’s senior netball team, Sasher-Gaye Henry-Wright, says she is proud of her team’s achievement at the championships in Glasgow, Scotland.
The Sunshine Girls won back-to-back silver medals at the Commonwealth Games for the first time, beaten 56-48 by New Zealand in Sunday’s final. Henry-Wright praised her players for reaching another gold medal match and said the national programme is moving in the right direction.
“I think it is a big achievement for us because I think that the ladies really worked to put themselves in a gold medal match,” said Henry-Wright.
“We didn’t achieve the results that we wanted, but it is work in progress, and we can only try to build on what we have started.
“I think that the programme is growing and I want to thank all our sponsors. But there are so many things that are lacking in our programme that we will want to continue to build and continue to grow, and we just hope that we will get more persons on board to push through that hurdle for the World Cup for 2027,” she said. 
Henry-Wright noted that the players were understandably disappointed not to claim the gold medal but were still pleased with what they had accomplished.
“I think that the girls are ecstatic about this silver medal because they believed in themselves from day one, and they are now basking in the moment,” she stated. “However, they definitely wanted the gold medal.
“But it was unfortunate for them. They are pretty pleased with their performance because they knew that we were not one of the favourites going into this tournament, and so they are excited about this silver medal.”
STRUGGLED
The Sunshine Girls struggled to find their rhythm offensively against the disciplined Silver Ferns, and Henry-Wright pointed out that her team’s movement and fitness let them down in key moments of the game.
“I think that we got a bit static in the attack because we were not going for the ball and we allowed them to dedicate the space for us, and that was one of our main shortfalls,” she reasoned.
“I think we came out a bit flat, and so I think that fitness was also an issue, especially in the midcourt. But all in all, we just needed to make the movements, and that also caused us the match today.”

BRIGHTER START

New Zealand made a brighter start to the contest, forcing several turnovers in Jamaica’s midcourt before capitalising on them to take a 16-13 lead at the end of the opening quarter. The second quarter produced an entertaining battle as both teams traded goals at either end of the court.
Each side scored 12 goals in the period, allowing the Silver Ferns to carry a narrow 28-25 advantage into halftime.
Veteran goal shooter Romelda Aiken-George kept Jamaica in contention, scoring 18 of the Sunshine Girls’ 25 first-half goals. However, missed opportunities proved costly, as Aiken-George missed two attempts while Shanice Beckford also failed to convert twice, and those were chances that could have narrowed the gap at halftime.

LEVEL

The Sunshine Girls responded strongly after the break, tightening up defensively and drawing level at 34-34 with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter.
However, New Zealand regained control during the closing stages of the period, intercepting several Jamaican attacking passes before converting them into goals. The Silver Ferns outscored Jamaica 13-11 in the quarter to open a 41-36 lead heading into the final stanza.
The Jamaicans were unable to recover after a sluggish start to the fourth quarter, as New Zealand stretched their lead to 10 goals midway through the period. The Sunshine Girls battled to reduce the deficit, but the Silver Ferns maintained their composure to secure a 56-48 victory and reclaim the Commonwealth Games title.
Aiken-George led Jamaica’s scoring with 32 goals from 36 attempts, while Beckford contributed 16 goals from 18 attempts.