Former England netball captain reflects on how her team won gold four years ago

England beat New Zealand to line up a mouth-watering Netball Commonwealth Games semi-final with Australia on August 6

ICON: Serena Guthrie Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images

AFTER ENGLAND beat New Zealand to line up a mouth-watering Netball Commonwealth Games semi-final with Australia on August 6, former captain Serena Guthrie, speaking exclusively to Lucozade Sport, reflected on the two sides’ previous encounter in 2018 where England secured gold on Aussie soil.

Q. What were the emotions heading into the final?

SR: They (Australia), they had the weight of the world on their shoulders and we didn’t have anything. The country was celebrating that we were in the final and any England fan could watch England in a netball final for the first time. For us the shackles were off, we knew they were nervous about playing us.

How did you push through the pain barrier with injuries in the final?  

If you can’t give 110% in a game like that, you shouldn’t be on the pitch, not in a game like that. I remember I had to physically sit down, I couldn’t actually walk. My quads were cramping, my hamstrings, my hips and it was a world of discomfort for me. I remember thinking ‘gosh I hope this doesn’t go to extra time because I can’t play anymore’.

Did you know that Helen Housby wouldn’t miss the decisive point in a nail-biting thriller?

I knew she’d score it, trust her to score the winning goal because she’s a cheeky character. It’s the best feeling in the world when you go and achieve the top goal, the top colour, the gold medal. The fact that it was in Australia just made it so much sweeter.

Did you know that Australia were so confident that they had green and gold confetti made up ahead of the final?

We celebrated in gold and green confetti, that’s how confident they were that they were going to win, that made it even better for us. It’s such a proud moment when you see your flag, it was just fantastic to see.

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