Australian Diamonds win dramatic finale over Silver Ferns, Sunday Aryang injured

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“You want to finish with the trophy, and that’s what we had to do today. Would I have liked to have won the 60-minute game? Absolutely,” the coach said.

Marinkovich felt there was merit in playing a fifth match to decide the trophy, although the raucous crowd at Wolfbrook Arena appeared to enjoy the new format.

“I think it’d be great to have a fifth game to get that clarity as well, but at the same time, I think it was very exciting.

“It’s the first time netball’s done it and that crowd was deafening.

“You thought you were contributing by yelling and giving instructions from the sideline, but really we were just a mouse sort of squeaking at the side, and the girls take ownership out on the court.

“I certainly think it’ll be one that’s talked about in terms of what that experience was like, but yeah, you always want to win your 60-minute games as well.”

The Diamonds camp didn’t have an immediate update on the severity of Aryang’s injury, only saying she was “being assessed”.

“You never want to see a player injured, and I thought Sunday had a sensational series,” Marinkovich said of the West Coast Fever star.

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“I thought she’d come in and she’d done an incredible amount of work, so she’s with the medical team at the moment and she’s in good hands, and we’ll see what the outcome is.”

As well as wresting back the cup, Marinkovich said her squad had taken a lot out of the series and earlier against South Africa, blooding four debutantes as they build towards the Games in Glasgow and then the World Cup in 2027 in Sydney.

“We’ve gained a lot, over two series that we’ve had back-to-back, just bringing new players through, players that haven’t even played in New Zealand before and getting that experience,” she said.

AAP