A homecoming to remember

SUNSHINE GIRLS captain Shamera Sterling-Humphrey was abuzz with excitement when she lifted the inaugural Rhone Hornsby Trophy after the Sunshine Girls defeated England’s Vitality Roses 61-53 in the deciding match of the Vitality Netball Horizon Series inside the National Indoor Sports Centre yesterday.

The Girls continued their impressive showing in the home leg of the four-game series, making it two wins in a row following their nail-biting 50-49 win on Monday.

Jamaica took the series 2-1 after coming back from a 49-49 draw and a 55-47 loss in Manchester, England.

Sterling-Humphrey described the series victory as a major achievement for the team which has not been in action for almost a year and a half.

“It is such an overwhelming feeling,” she expressed after the match.

“Knowing that my team has not played international netball since the World Cup and to come out and put on a performance like that against a team who has played 17 test matches since the World Cup is very commendable.”

In yesterday’s decider, it was the visitors who started the stronger of the two, as England opened a solid three-point lead to take the first quarter 15-11.

DOMINANT

It seemed the Roses would continue their dominant form heading into the second quarter when they went on to open a five-point lead in the opening minutes.

However, the Sunshine Girls surged back into the contest, pulling level at 20-20 before grinding out a 28-26 lead by the end of the first half.

The third quarter provided end-to-end action with the home crowd treated to world-class attacking displays from both teams.

Jamaica’s Romelda Aiken-George had a near perfect night, downing 40 goals from 43 attempts to lead the way for her team. Aiken, using her height and athleticism to her advantage, dominated the circle to see Jamaica maintain their lead at the end of the third quarter 42-39.

England’s Liv Tchine (42/47) continued her prodigious scoring throughout the series which ended with just seven missed shots across all four games.

Yet, it was not enough as the defensive display by player of the series, Sterling-Humphrey, partnered by Jodi-Ann Ward, limited the Roses scoring opportunities, which led to a big 19-14 difference in the final quarter.

England captain Francesca Williams lamented the defeat after their brilliant start to the contest.

“It’s disappointing for us when we started the game so strong and we let them back in. We need to be confident that we can chase the game and get ourselves back into it.”

At goal attack, Shanice Beckford was also in fine form, scoring 21 of 25 attempts, while her opposite number, Lois Pearson, had 11 from 18.