Fran Williams admitted being asked to be captain of the England team for their upcoming series against South Africa came “a bit out of the blue” as preparations continued for the opening game on Tuesday.
The Loughborough Lightning player will lead the Vitality Roses in their tri-series against the SPAR Proteas, which begins on December 5 in Manchester followed by two games on December 9 and 10 in Nottingham.
Working in a wider leadership group alongside Eleanor Cardwell and Imogen Allison, Williams will lead the team for the first time and revealed that while receiving the captaincy was unexpected, she was looking forward to the opportunity.
“(It was) a bit out of the blue, I was having a catch-up meeting with Jess (Thirlby) our head coach about something completely separate and not relevant to leadership roles and captaincy,” Williams told the PA news agency.
“Then at the end of the meeting she asked if I’d want to be captain, if I’d take on that honour and I said ‘I don’t have to think about it, I’d love to do that opportunity’.
“Then I walked away and thought ‘gosh that’s actually a big deal, maybe I should have thought about this a bit more!’.
“There’s nothing better than being able to represent the team and it’s just such an easy role to take on when you’ve got a group and a squad like we have who are so willing to get stuck in, always seeing the positives, want to jump on board and get involved in as much as possible.”
December’s fixtures will be England’s first games back on home turf since winning silver at the Netball World Cup over the summer, where they fell to a 61-45 defeat against Australia in the final.
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Williams played a pivotal part in the tournament, providing a vital interception in the dying minutes of their semi-final against reigning champions New Zealand and reflected on a “history-making moment” reaching the final.
“I think at the time and in that moment of the final it was obviously devastating,” Williams said.
“To lose against Australia particularly when – bearing in mind it was a tight game – we’d beaten them only a few days before.
“However, when I look back now, I have nothing but pride for the way we performed this summer as a Roses squad. Not just players but all the staff and the journey we’d been on to reaching that historic final and getting our first-ever silver medal at a Netball World Cup, it was still a history-making moment.
“Not just the final result but also the memories I have with that team. Not just in the prep camp before, but the years before leading to us being able to do that is what I’ll take away from the experience the most.
“It’s so exciting to see where we could end up in four years’ time. Now I’ve got that springboard and motivation from being that close in the summer to really want to go for it those next four years.”
There are plenty of new faces in the Roses squad for the South Africa series with five players preparing to make their home international debuts and Williams was looking forward to the “new opportunities ahead”.
She added: “We’ve got a fresh-looking squad, new opportunities lying ahead and whilst it’s so important we carry those stories and lessons learned from the summer and make sure we’re all on the same page and everyone – even if you weren’t there – gets to learn from what worked well in the summer to get to that point and what we could do better to get us over the line in that final in four years’ time.
“There’s also the opportunity to create our own memories and our own history with a new squad.”
Jamaican trio on song as Thunderbirds trounce struggling GIANTS by 20 goals
Jamaica’s trio of Latanya Wilson, Shamera Sterling-Humphrey, and Romelda Aiken-George again produced strong performances, as their Adelaide Thunderbirds team outclassed GIANTS Netball 69-49, at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre, on Saturday.
Aiken-George led from the front with 29 goals from 35 attempts, backed by Lucy Austin, who scored 23 goals from 24, including two super shots, while Lauren Frew (9 goals from 9 attempts), and Georgie Horjus (8 goals from 9 attempts), also got in on the act.
While the shooters were clinical for the most parts, it was the defensive work of Matilda Garrett, Sterling-Humphrey, Wilson and others, that limited GIANTS –the team of another Jamaican Jodi-Ann Ward –in the 20-goal win.
Sophie Dwyer, with 26 goals from 27 attempts, and Jo Harten 18 goals from 24 attempts led the scoring for the GIANTS, while Matisse Letherbarrow got the other five goals.
The Thunderbirds, who entered the contest with two wins and a loss, were always favoured to come out tops, as the GIANTS struggle to find their footing, and are yet to secure a win this season.
With the use of a variety of combinations from her ten-strong roster, Head coach, Tania Obst, ensured GIANTS didn’t stand a chance, as her Thunderbirds team won all four quarters, 18-12, 19-11, 17-13, and 15-13.
Though Jamie-Lee Price was crucial for the GIANTS, doing a wealth of work in both attack and defence for her team, her hard work was not always rewarded as a few shots were missed and unforced errors were made. That, coupled with the fact that Adelaide’s defenders Garrett and Sterling-Humphrey applied intense pressure, made life even more difficult for the GIANTS.
The Thunderbirds’ fine form continued after the half-time interval, while the GIANTS once again struggled to stay in touch with their host. Despite being down, Dwyer’s confidence for the GIANTS didn’t waver and she found her rhythm which was important for the visitors.
However, as it felt like there was a momentum shift, Dwyer broke on the centre pass, giving up much-needed possession, and the positional swap between Wilson and Sterling-Humphrey made life miserable for the GIANTS, as it caused confusion for their shooters in the circle.
The Thunderbirds went into the final period 54-36 up and denied the GIANTS of almost any opportunity to get the ball down court smoothly and easily.
Before the final Power Five, Obst again changed combinations as the Thunderbirds pressed the ascendancy and completed the handsome victory. They now have three wins from four games.
Pep Guardiola backs England for Euro 2024 success
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola believes it is only a matter of time before England get over the line at a major international tournament and gives them every chance of triumphing at Euro 2024.
England are among the favourites to win this summer's Euros in Germany along with the host nation, France, Spain and Portugal.
The Three Lions were runners-up at Euro 2020 after losing in heart-breaking fashion on penalties to Italy in the final at Wembley.
They have also come close in the last two World Cup tournaments, making the semi-finals in 2018 and the last eight in 2022.
Guardiola, who has England stars like Phil Foden, John Stones, Kyle Walker and Jack Grealish in his Man City squad, drew comparisons his side knocking on the door in the Champions League for many years before their eventual continental success in 2023.
He would also have closely watched many of his former Barcelona players play a key role in the Spain team at Euro 2008, which would prove to be the first of three straight major tournament successes after many years of near misses for La Roja before that.
With Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham among England's options for the tournament, Guardiola likes what he sees.
"The national team? Really good. But it's not just the talent of the strikers, it's the whole package, the whole group. Gareth [Southgate] knows perfectly what he has to do," Guardiola told reporters.
"I have the feeling, everyone has the feeling, that the England national team, in the last events, the World Cup and European Championships, they made steps.
"They are on the verge, they are really close. They lost a final and got to a semi-final.
"When you arrive at these stages every two years, it's going to happen.
"It's quite similar to us – we were close and, in the end, we lifted it. Just believe it. If they believe it they can do it, believe it and they can do it."
The Euros begin on June 14 and England will be expected to top a group that also contains Slovenia, Denmark and Serbia.
Nortje makes international return for South Africa's T20 World Cup squad
Anrich Nortje earned a recall to South Africa's fold as he was included in the Proteas' 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup.
Nortje has been in action in the Indian Premier League, but has not played for South Africa, who will be captained by Aiden Markram, in nine months.
While he has taken seven wickets in six matches for the Delhi Capitals, Nortje has gone at 13.36 runs per over, but has been given the nod due to his pace.
"Anrich has got another month before the World Cup starts so I have no doubt he'll hit his straps," South Africa coach Rob Walter said.
"It's good to see that his speed is up. The one thing Anrich has that separates him from others is raw pace. There's not many guys who can bowl 150kph and he can. Pace is an X-factor."
Lungi Ngidi has missed out, though he is a travelling reserve.
Quinton de Kock has not not been in good form, but has made the cut due to historical performances. He is no longer under contract at Cricket South Africa (CSA) and retired from ODIs last year.
"Quinny, we've seen him do it time and time again for us," Walter said.
"Reeza [Hendricks] has been a star performer for us in T20 cricket, was a standout in this domestic CSA T20 challenge again, and Ryan Rickelton has had two outstanding competitions really where he's played the brand of cricket that we're looking to play.
"And then we're going to have Markram and that'll be the top order. It's mostly a performance-based decision and from Quinton's point of view is just a real knowledge of what he's capable of."
Rickelton and Ottniel Baartman have been standout performers in the SA20 this year, and could earn their maiden T20I caps.
South Africa did not make it out of the Super 12 stage at the last World Cup in 2022.
Three big players, Temba Bavuma, Rilee Rossouw and Wayne Parnell, have missed out compared to the squad for that tournament.
The Proteas start their World Cup campaign against Sri Lanka on June 3, after playing a warm-up series against West Indies.
South Africa squad:
Aiden Markram (capt), Ottniel Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs.
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