Rewind: The 1999 choke

This is my match report from the 1999 world netball championships final in Christchurch. The memories are vivid.


Christchurch: It will live on in our memories as one of the great chokes
in New Zealand sporting history.

Australia's 42-41 win in the world netball championship final on
Saturday night drew rivers of tears from the Silver Ferns and torrents
of cheers from hundreds of gold-clad supporters.

This was an epic clash, decided by a single buzzer-beating goal after
one of the more remarkable comebacks seen on a netball court.

New Zealand led by six goals heading into the final quarter and appeared
to be heading for its first world title since 1987.

But an Australian netballer should never be under-estimated, and there
were some worried home fans when the defending champion drew level with
two minutes to play.

The sides traded goals until star New Zealand shooter Donna Loffhagen
took possession in a spot from which she would normally have no problem
netting a goal.

The ball went up once, twice, three times, missed each time and the
Australians had the ball back with 16 seconds to play.

Replacement goal-attack Sharelle McMahon calmly slotted her shot in the
final second and was mobbed by her jubilant team-mates.

The match capped a forgettable decade at the world tournament for the
New Zealanders, beaten by a single goal by eventual champion Australia
for the third successive time.

New Zealand started the seven players who won Friday night's thriller
against Jamaica - shooters Loffhagen and Belinda Colling, Anna Rowberry,
Julie Seymour and Lesley Nicol through the mid-court and Belinda
Charteris and Bernice Mene on defence.

Australia started Liz Ellis and Kathryn Harby on defence, Peta Squire,
Carissa Tombs and Shelley O'Donnell through the mid-court and Jacqui
Delaney and Vicki Wilson in the shooting circle.

Both sides started the match at a furious pace, with New Zealand's
defence an early stand-out against some hesitant Australian attackers.

Mene was superb, giving Wilson precious little room to move under the
net, and Charteris was able to frequently force Delaney to shoot from
long range.

A 13-13 score reflected a tough and even first quarter, although
Australia did lead by up to three in the middle stages.

New Zealand got a break in the second quarter and upped the pace to lead
23-21 at half-time.

If the first quarter had been entertaining and the second relatively
flat, then the best word for the third was messy.

There were numerous turnovers, spilled passes and missed goals, and both
sides seemed to get increasingly frustrated by the inconsistency of the
match umpires.

Australia took the opportunity of replacing the erratic Delaney with
McMahon during an injury break 10 minutes into the quarter, and the
change made an almost-immediate difference.

The 1991 and 1995 champion, which started the game showing little of the
killer instinct it was once famous for, trailed 28-34 heading into the
final quarter.

There was a briefly sad moment when 99-test veteran Wilson was replaced
by Jenny Borlase, but the solace of ending her career as a world
champion must surely be sweet enough.

Harby and Ellis were at their familiar best on defence, Tombs ended her
test career with a solid performance and O'Donnell had a fine second half.

But the star of the show was undoubtedly McMahon, the bashful
22-year-old who only played 20 minutes but ended up turning the match.

Seymour, named the player of the tournament after the match, and Otago
captain Nicol were solid on defence for New Zealand.

Australia 42 (V Wilson 15 goals from 26 attempts, J Delaney 12/18, J
Borlase 9/13, S McMahon 6/8), New Zealand 41 (D Loffhagen 30/42, B
Colling 11/20). Half-time: 21-23.