Commonwealth Games: England cruise past Northern Ireland to open netball campaign as Scotland fall to New Zealand | netball news

England beat Northern Ireland 83–34 on day one of the netball pool stage at the Commonwealth Games, but Scotland lost to New Zealand.

England ran out comfortable winners at The Hydro, with all 12 players taking to the court in a confidence-building performance.

Head coach Anna Stembridge saw her team take a 24-7 lead into the first quarter break, which soon grew to 41-18 at halftime.

Jayda Pechova and skipper Fran Williams both impress, while Lois Pearson, Sasha Glasgow and Liv Tichine combine beautifully.

Half-time substitute Eleanor Cardwell top-scored with 35 goals from 37 shots, with the squad now focused on the final test against defending champions Australia.

“It was important to get the first win and performance under our belt,” said Stembridge. “We will make sure we close the loop on our debrief and then turn our full focus to Australia tomorrow.”

“Australia are number one in the world for a reason, and we have a lot of respect for them,” he continued.

“We feel well prepared and will be ready to respond to whatever strategy they come up with. It’s exciting to think about the matchups and the challenges we can create.

“Ultimately, you want to play against the best and coach against the best.

“These are opportunities that test you and help you improve.”

Vice-captain Tichain added: “It was great to see everyone practicing what we’ve been working on in training. Everyone came out and gave it their all.

“I think we needed it. We played well together and got rid of those first game nerves. Everyone knows how it was in the opening game, so now we’re ready to focus on Australia tomorrow.”

Meanwhile, Scotland were beaten 74-44 by New Zealand in their Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games opener, although the remaining group matches against lower-ranked opponents give them a chance to bounce back.

Team England netball squad

defense
Halimat Adio (28, London, London Pulse)
Francesca Williams (28, Reading, West Coast Fever)
Funmi Fadoju (23, Redbridge, London Pulse)
Zayda Pechova (21, Fleet, Nottingham Forest)

Midcourt
Imo Allison (28, Huddersfield, Queensland Firebirds)
Jess Shaw (30, Stockport, Loughborough Lightning)
Amy Carter (27, Nottingham, also Manchester Thunder)
Nat Metcalf (33, Keighley, also Manchester Thunder)

attack
Sasha Glasgow (27, Moonta, Australia, West Coast Fever)
Liv Tichain (25, London, London Pulse)
Eleanor Cardwell (31, Blackpool, also Manchester Thunder)
Lois Pearson (26, Bury, also Manchester Thunder)

Vitality rose; The England netball senior team, currently ranked third in the world netball world rankings.