LIVE COMMENTARY (Be sure to refresh your browser for latest update)
New Zealand – 46 53 - Australia
FULLTIME - Australia have retained the Constellation Cup. Click here for a full wrap.
0:40 - The centurion Bassett bangs a couple more home to seal the deal for the Aussies.
1:50 - Bassett from under the hoop, and it's a long way back for NZ now.
2:25 - Langman held ball! Huge.
3:10 - Folau from deep again. Langman grabs the intercept, Ekenasio scores. Five-goal game.
4:20 - NZ battle for the intercept. Ekenasio composed underneath to score.
4:55 - Aussie force the mistake inside, huge play from the defence.
5:45 - Couple of big goals from Bassett.
6:30 - Folau sinks another to cut the lead to just four. Game on here and the tension is rising.
7:25 - Huge turnover for NZ. Folau makes it count.
8:10 - Bassett pushes the lead back to seven.
9:10 - Folau fakes the shot and finds Ekenasio
10:55 - Burger with a slick steal, Ekenasio obliges at the other end.
11:40 - Folau drains one from deep. Eight-goal lead.
12:20 - Tippett drops one in. Karaka making the Aussies work hard for every inch in the circle.
13:03 - Turnover by Aussie after some hustling NZ defence.
13:55 - Folau fakes the shot and links with Ekenasio. Folau hits a leaner.
14:40 - Ekenasio opens the final stanza with a score.
End of third quarter
00:20 - Folau sneaks one in as the quarter ticks away.
1:20 - Tippett bags back-to-back baskets to push the lead back to 10.
2:25 - Folau and Ekenasio combine inside for a bucket.
3:15 - Turnovers each way. Steps inside from Aussie.
4:50 - Subs on for each side
6:30 - Ekenasio offensive rebounding like Steven Adams out there. Puts back another.
7:40 - Bassett breaks the NZ streak with a goal.
9:10 - Ekenasio rebounds her own miss and puts it back in. Pressure starting to shift on to the Aussies here.
10:30 - Turnover NZ's way, Ekenasio hits another.
11:11 - Folau cuts the lead to 10. Make that nine.
12:15 - Karaka with the intercept, but a held ball gifts it straight back.
12:40 - Ekenasio gets NZ's first and second of the half.
14:10 - Tippett gets the half underway with an Aus score.
HALFTIME - For the fourth-straight game in this series, NZ will have to come from behind at the break to win this one, and that lead is pretty daunting. Join us back here shortly for the third quarter.
00:10 - Ekenasio lands as the half ticks away.
2:10 - Folau makes her 11th straight, doing her best to keep her side in this contest.
3:15 - Baskets traded. Contact yet again on NZ, Bassett gets free and makes it a 15-goal lead.
5:12 - The Aussie buckets keep coming. NZ with no rhythm to their game at the moment.
5:40 - Bassett with a rare miss, but NZ turn it right back over with a sloppy pass.
7:15 - Folau hits one from the carpark. Tippett replies immediately, 10/10 attempts.
8:55 - Burger with another and this is getting away from the Kiwis quickly.
11:10 - Folau hits a much-needed long range bucket to break the drought.
12:30 - Shoddy pass gifts Aussie the ball, they graciously accept and splash another home.
14:05 - Bassett gets free for another from point blank range.
14:33 - Turnovers killing the Ferns so far, another held ball.
End of first quarter
1:35 - Well worked ball to Bassett and Aussie stretch to a seven-goal edge.
3:40 - Mes turns it over on contact yet again. Taurua has seen enough, Ekenasio is off the bench to replace her.
4:15 - Bassett on fire early for Aussie. Langman's pass intercepted.
5:55 - Mes rebounds her own miss and puts it back in.
6:56 - Bassett from right underneath.
8:08 - Langman active early, finds Folau for another.
9:05 - Tippett bags her first to make it a five-goal lead.
9:10 - Tippett and Bassett combine again.
11:20 - Rore leaps to nab an intercept. Folau cashes in.
12:10 - Mes sets the screen and rolls to take the pass. Finds Folau who hits the mark.
13:03 - Bassett sinks the first shot of her 100th test.
14:13 - Folau pinches a pass. Opens the scoring from the baseline.
14:45 - Turnover early for NZ, contact gifts it right back
3:20pm - Anthems are done and dusted. Game time.
3:15pm - Player intros are underway, not long until the opening pass is upon us.
3:07pm - The starting line-up for your Silver Ferns is in. Mes gets the nod over Ekenasio in a surprising selection.
Apparently Ekenasio only landed in Aussie late on Saturday night, after being forced to stay in NZ to sit some exams.
Kia ora and welcome to live updates from Sydney where the Silver Ferns will look to break their seven-year Constellation Cup drought against Australia.
LIVE COMMENTARY (Be sure to refresh your browser for latest update)
New Zealand – 0 0 - Australia
TAB betting odds: NZ - $2.30 Australia - $1.55
Pre-match banter:
Taurua says Ferns still not number one
AAP
Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua says her team hasn't yet earned the right to be considered the undisputed top of the netball world despite their recent wins over Australia.
NZ lead the best-of-four Constellation Cup against the Diamonds 2-1, with Sunday's clash in Perth to decide the winner.
The Silver Ferns beat Australia by a goal at the World Cup in July, and have twice beaten the Diamonds by the same margin during the current four-match series.
But Taurua just has to take one look at her country's poor Constellation Cup history to know her team has some way to go before it can be considered the best in the world.
NZ have won the series just once in nine attempts since its inception in 2010.
That triumph arrived in 2012, with Australia winning the next six from that point on.
Beating Australia in a one-off game at a World Cup or Commonwealth Games is tough.
But beating them over a four-game series is an even bigger challenge, and one that Taurua wants to see her team do consistently.
When asked whether she felt her team was now the hunted after their recent wins over Australia, Taurua replied: "I wish we could be in that position. It's a work in progress.
"This is a bit of a different beast for us in the Constellation Cup. I felt that the Worlds were one-offs.
"But going back-to-back four games in a row - you've got to be quite smart, strategic. You've got to be on your game.
"We haven't had the cup since 2012, and for us to back up from one game to another is a huge improvement.
Newshub.
