Netball World Cup finalists Australia and England to meet this year for series in Victoria

Netball Australia and Visit Victoria has announced a new international series between last year’s World Cup finalists.

In a rematch of the 2023 Netball World Cup final, Australia will host England in a three match series later this year. Picture: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images/Netball World Cup 2023

The top teams in world netball will face off in Australia this September and October, with the Diamonds set to play series against World Cup final opponent England and world no. 2 New Zealand.

There may be no benchmark competition this season but Diamonds players will have the opportunity to add up to seven caps to their international tally after a three-match domestic series against England’s Roses was announced on Friday.

The series will pit last year’s World Cup grand finalists against each other in a tournament to be played throughout Australia with the final game to be played in Bendigo in regional Victoria.

The Victorian game – on September 25 – was announced on Friday afternoon under Netball Australia’s sponsorship deal with Visit Victoria.

The opening two games in the series will be held on September 19 and 22, with venues to be announced shortly.

Netball Australia chief executive Stacey West looked forward to a continuation of the rivalry between the two countries and the first series since their 2022 meetings in Australia.

“The Origin Australian Diamonds and the England Roses have an intense rivalry on the court and this will no doubt be another thrilling match between two of the world’s best teams competing in Bendigo,” West said.

“We thank the Victorian Government and Visit Victoria for their support and investment in the country’s largest female team sport and our World Champions the Origin Australian Diamonds.”

Helen Housby of England and Courtney Bruce of Australia will be part of the Victorian series. Picture: Charlie Crowhurst/Getty Images for England Netball

The three game series against England, who beat the Diamonds in their fixture match at the last year’s World Cup in Cape Town before being outclassed by Australia in the final, add to the four-match Constellation Cup series to be played in Australia and New Zealand in October.

Perth will host the first of the Australian matches against the Silver Ferns on October 27, with the fourth and final game in the series to be played in Melbourne on October 30.

The opening two matches of the series will be played in New Zealand this year, in Wellington (October 20) and Auckland (October 23).

The Diamonds hold every major trophy in the sport after snaring the World Cup last year following their one goal defeat to New Zealand in 2019.

They also regained the Commonwealth Games gold medal in Birmingham in 2022.

While they did not meet the Kiwis in either of those tournament deciders, they still face a major challenge against the Silver Ferns, especially in New Zealand, where they have not beaten the Ferns since 2021.

That series, Diamonds coach Stacey Marinkovich’s first in charge of Australia, is the only one she has lost, although the Diamonds have retained the Constellation Cup on the last two occasions in a drawn series.

The series against England starts an exciting new chapter of the rivalry between the two countries.

Since the World Cup final, Diamonds Ash Brazill and Steph Fretwell have retired from international competition, while former Collingwood captain Geva Mentor and ex Giants midcourter Chelsea Pittman have retired internationally, meaning the September series is likely to showcase some of the exciting new talent from both countries.

The England Series and the Constellation Cup will be broadcast live and exclusive in Australia on Fox Sports, available on Kayo Freebies and Foxtel.

Originally published as Netball World Cup finalists Australia and England to meet this year for series in Victoria