VNWC2019 Opposition in Focus: Jamaica

The Lowdown

Known as the Sunshine Girls, the Jamaican team are formidable on the court and have proved a tough contest for teams coming up against them. Ranked second in the world, the Sunshine Girls house some of the world’s best players within their team and came into the competition in their strongest position to date.

Jamaica have appeared at every World Cup fixture since its inception in 1963 and have hosted the event twice before – once in 1971 and again in 2003 in the country’s capital of Kingston. As one of the top five teams in the INF world rankings, Jamaica automatically qualified for the World Cup and are making their 15th World Cup appearance.

Ones to Watch

Jhaniele Fowler (GS) – 

Standing at 6ft 6in, Fowler is one of the tallest shooters in the world and is competing in Liverpool in her third World Cup competition. Currently residing in Australia and plying her trade in the Suncorp Super Netball league, Fowler captained her national side to a bronze medal in the 2018 Commonwealth Games. In Jhaniele’s debut season (2018) with West Coast Fever in she won the leading goal scorer award with 783 goals, which is still the current record, and was also awarded the competition’s Player of the Year title.

Shamera Sterling (GK, GD) – 

Coming off the back of her first season in Australia’s Suncorp Super Netball league, where Sterling represents Adelaide Thunderbirds, the impressive goal keeper was a crucial component in the 2018 Commonwealth Games bronze medal winning side, where she topped the leader board for the competition’s intercept count. Her World Cup debut, Sterling is no stranger to many of the Vitality Roses squad after starring for Loughborough Lightning in their 2018 Vitality Netball Superleague season. Recording a whopping 101 intercepts in just 18 matches, Sterling was deservedly awarded Player of the Season before gaining a contract in Australia.

Familiar Faces

Jamaica’s side features two familiar faces who both play their domestic netball in the Vitality Netball Superleague. Wing defence Jodi-Ann Ward has enjoyed a successful season with Severn Stars in 2019 and makes her World Cup debut here in Liverpool. Stacian Facey can also be recognised amongst the Sunshine Girls as a regular feature in the Celtic Dragons side. Both Facey and Ward finished within the top 10 players in the league for intercepts, finishing with 27 and 29 respectively.

Head-to-Head

The Vitality Roses and Jamaica have enjoyed a rich history of rivalry with both sides consistently battling to maintain their top four status in the INF World Rankings.

A more notable recent encounter was in the 2018 Commonwealth Games semi-final where Jamaica took England right down to the wire falling short by just one goal on the final whistle, leaving England to advance to the final where they made history, winning gold for the first time.

Since the Commonwealth Games, the battle has continued between the two sides.

Travelling to Jamaica in October 2018, England used the Sunshine Series as an opportunity to bring youth players into the side and give them vital experience against a top four team.

Jamaica secured a 3-0 victory over the Vitality Roses, giving them an opportunity to move into second in the INF World Rankings ahead of this year’s Vitality Netball World Cup.

However, England lead the head-to-head record between the two teams at previous World Cups, recording 10 wins compared to the Sunshine Girls’ four.

Jamaica Squad in Full

Adean Thomas, Jhaniele Fowler, Jodi-Ann Ward, Kadie-Ann Dehaney, Khadijah Williams, Nicole Dixon, Romelda Aiken, Shamera Sterling, Shanice Beckford, Shimona Nelson, Stacian Facey and Vangelee Williams.

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