The NZ Men have continued their winning ways over their biggest FAST5 netball rivals, edging out the Australian Men by four goals at the FAST5 Netball World Series in Christchurch.

NZ Men’s captain Eriata Vercoe said they were thrilled to get the 32-28 win following a tough Trans-Tasman series last month where they were beaten in four Tests.

“Every time you beat the Aussies, there’s no better feeling,” he said.  “After the last Trans-Tasman Cup, we know they dominated us in that but to come back with redemption, it just feels so good to get the win.”

A couple of early turnovers gave the Australian Men the edge on the scoreboard, but the NZ Men maintained their defensive pressure in the circle – Timothy Apisai doing his best to contain Australian shooter Liam Killey.

A maximum power play shot from Thomson Matuku gave the NZ Men a 14-11 lead going into the first break and they maintained a narrow lead midway through the second spell.

Transition onto attack proved difficult against the smothering Australian Men defence and the scores were level at 17-17 heading into the second power play of the game, the NZ Men sinking six points in the dying seconds to trail 24-25 at the main break.

The relentless efforts from Apisai and the sharp shooting of Matuku helped the hosts grab the initiative late in the third quarter, leading 31-26 heading into the final spell.

But attacking errors proved costly for the NZ Men early in the fourth quarter as the Australian Men pulled the scoreline back with single point shots, setting up a crucial fourth power play in what was a low-scoring period.

Vercoe said the home crowd and the defensive work from the NZ Men set them up for the win in a hectic last few minutes of play.

“This Christchurch crowd is just so amazing.  They’ve helped us out the last two years.  They’re like an eighth player for us so to have them behind us is a second push for us when we need it,” he said.

“Defensively our trio win a lot of ball for us – they don’t know how much confidence they give us when they win ball like that.”

Meanwhile, earlier in the day, the Australian Men showed their intent to break their FAST5 title drought with a 42-27win over South Africa.

The NZ Men take on South Africa in day two of the FAST5 Netball World Series at Wolfbrook Arena leading into a Grand Final.