MANY would believe that players from the team which won the silver medal at the recent Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, would be guaranteed spots on the netball World Cup squad, but according to Sunshine Girls Head Coach Connie Francis the selection process is different and all players will have to fight for their places.

The Netball World Cup will take place in Cape Town, South Africa from July 28 to August 6, 2023.

Francis said that while the World Cup is still some months away, she will ensure that all the players who are called up for World Cup selection will be given a fair chance.

“I believe that everybody should work very, very hard because going to the World Cup, we need to be a little bit better than where we were at the Commonwealth Games. I thought that if we could just step up our game by another 20 per cent we should be okay, but the Commonwealth Games are over and the World Cup is here,” Francis told the Jamaica Observer.

“It [the World Cup] is coming, all guns are blazing — and I think that this is an opportunity for us here to give other people a look-in. It will come down to the best 12… the best 12 who will be able to play hard everyday will also be [able] to track their progress leading into the World Cup.

“It just cannot be just the usual, in the same sense of we have some players that are set. It is not like that. Players have to go out there and work very hard to make this World Cup team, and I am so happy that we have these youngsters who have come in and shown that they are fearless, that they are able to play in the moment, and control the game and to be productive. That is what I love about having this squad going into the World Cup,” explained Francis further.

In terms of high-tech preparation for the players, Francis stated that they hope to have at least one series before the World Cup to get a better look at the prospects in their group who they have to build on for the World Cup.

“World Cup is serious because you have Australia and New Zealand who play against each other and then you have England, who is down in Australia playing. So it [World Cup] is about nine months away and so there is no break.

“We are looking at releasing the players who are going into Australia to their various teams. It is just working. They [Commonwealth Games team] have been on a long break and so they are actually in our squad now doing strength and conditioning, and so it is about regrouping and looking forward to ensuring that we are putting all things in place and to ensure that we can win the World Cup,” Francis noted.

Winning the World Cup is a huge task for the Sunshine Girls but Francis said that success only comes with hard work, and that is the main focus for the players at the moment.

“I know that we have a shot but we just have to come out with that discipline of working and trying not to lose focus on our main objective, and that is to win gold. This group has not won a World Cup medal and I know they are eager and anxious, based on the quality of players we have in the group. We do have a shot of winning a medal but I would really like to see us go for that top medal.

“I know that we can but we just have to come with the mindset to go for it. Every session that we get a chance to be together to work hard, you know, that should be our focus point — what do we need to improve on to achieve that goal.

“The Commonwealth Games squad has been on break for a long time except for Jhaniele [Fowler], as I was so happy that she came in and she helped to nurture the younger ones,” Francis declared.

The team that won the silver medal at the Commonwealth Games were: Defenders — Kadie-Ann Dehaney, Shamera Sterling, Jodi-Ann Ward, Latanya Wilson; midcourt — Nicole Dixon-Rochester, Shadian Hemmings, Adean Thomas, Khadijah Williams; shooters — Shanice Beckford, Jhaniele Fowler, Shimona Nelson, Rebekah Robinson; reserves — Gezelle Allison, Mischa Creary, Abbeygail Linton