Written by Maria Thompson
📸 Commonwealth Games
After 9 days of competition and 38 games, New Zealand has been crowned the gold medalist of the Commonwealth Games, ending the golden run of the current number-one team in the world. Will this be a setback for Australia heading into a home World Cup next year, or will it give them the fire they need to get back on top? The next twelve months will most definitely give us that answer.
Across all matches of the competition, the matchups provided plenty of thrilling moments—and just as many talking points. Scotland brought the fight to Wales and took the win, Tonga secured their first-ever victory at the Games alongside their highest finish, and England impressed throughout. Most notably, England mounted a fantastic comeback against South Africa to reach the semi-finals.
The most disappointing element of the tournament for me, however, was Trinidad and Tobago fielding a team of rookies instead of their strongest squad. This was caused by a scheduling shift when the Games were moved from Australia to Scotland, creating a direct conflict with the CAC (Central American and Caribbean) Games starting August 3rd. The CAC Games are viewed as a better opportunity for T&T, as they offer more world-ranking points. Unfortunately for the team, this conflict sparked a wave of negative comments. If a similar situation arises in the future, will the organization rethink its decision and send their strongest team to the Commonwealth Games instead?
The defining moment of the tournament came when Jamaica fought tooth and nail to stay ahead of Australia in the semi-final, holding on to win by a single goal in an intense final few seconds. This marked the first time since netball was introduced to the Commonwealth Games that Australia failed to reach the gold medal match.
With all games now completed and the medalists crowned, here is the full final classification:
New Zealand (Gold)
Jamaica (Silver)
Australia (Bronze)
England
South Africa
Uganda
Scotland
Malawi
Tonga
Wales
Northern Ireland
Trinidad and Tobago
Many teams will now take a well-deserved break before the international calendar resumes and domestic pre-seasons kick off. For England, the biggest question mark remains: do they need a major overhaul of players and coaches after another disappointing 4th-place finish, or will they stick with what they have heading into the 2027 World Cup?
Add comment
Comments