Australia suffered a shock loss against England at the Netball World Cup, with the Roses recording their first-ever win against the Diamonds.
Amid some “silly” third quarter blunders from Australia, England was able to steal the lead and capture the game.
“We had a really good second quarter to get that lead but it was just silly mistakes in that third that got them that run back and made the game really close,” Diamonds captain Liz Watson told Fox Sports.
“They were stronger, they wanted it more, so (it was) a disappointing finish.”
The score finished at a 56-55 win for England, which gave the Diamonds their first loss of the tournament in Cape Town.
The win was even more historic for England considering they’ve lost 13 previous attempts to Australia at the World Cup— but Thursday night’s stunner finally broke that streak.
England was down by six goals at half-time and trailing by eight in the third quarter.
Their shooter, Eleanor Cardwell knocked down 34 of her 35 shot attempts and NSW Swifts star Helend Housby went 22-for-22.
For Australia, Cara Koenan made a dent in the score with 32 from 34 attempts, and Steph Wood made 19 off 22 as well as Kiera Austin with four from five.
Nevertheless, with only 47 seconds left on the clock, Cardwell put the Rose’s ahead for an upset win after a wayward pass from Austin.
Now, Australia will play Jamaica in the semi-finals as England tops the pool in the second preliminary stage.
England will likely face New Zealand in the semi-finals after an upset win from Jamaica over the defending champions.
Australia has won the Netball World Cup a record 11 times and is hoping to move the dial to 12 after a disappointing one-point loss to New Zealand back in 2019.