| 2019 Netball World Cup. |
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| Venue: Liverpool Arena Dates: 12-21 July ‘Uganda’s can perform better at the 2019 Netball World Cup, says the She Cranes team manager ‘Joseline Uchanda. The tournament starts with 16 teams competing in four round-robin groups from Friday, 12 July, until Sunday, 14 July. The top three teams in Group A and B will move through to play in Group F, while the top three sides in Group C and D will move into Group G. The bottom team from each group in the first preliminary stage will go into Group E and will play off for places 13 to 16. Teams finishing first and second in groups F and G will go through to the semi-finals on 20 July, with the top-placed team in each group facing the second team in the other group. The winners of each semi-final will compete for gold in the final, with the losers playing for bronze and the other remaining teams will compete for final placings from fifth to 16th. . The She Cranes will get their campaign underway in the last game of the day when they take on familiar opponents in England Roses. Coach Vincent Kiwanuka will be looking for the first win against England having lost all the four games they have faced the Roses. The first meeting between the two sides was at last year’s Commonwealth Games with the Roses beating the She Cranes 55-49. England also defeated Uganda in the international series. She Cranes need to finish among the top three in the group to advance. Eleven-time winners Australia are top of the world rankings and should make it through the first group stage fairly easily, with the next highest-ranked team they face being world number eight side Northern Ireland. But the Diamonds squad includes nine players who are making their World Cup debut and Jamaica could threaten their gold-medal chances. The Sunshine Girls lost to England by one goal in the 2018 Commonwealth games semi finals but overtook the Roses to take second in the world rankings earlier in July. England have never finished outside the top four at a World Cup but have only reached the final once, in 1975. The hosts will believe they can go one step further this year, bolstered by their victory against current world champions Australia on the Gold Coast in April. Preliminaries – stage one groups (12-14 July) Group A: Australia, Northern Ireland, Zimbabwe , Sri Lanka. Group B: New Zealand , Malawi , Barbados, Singapore . Group C : Jamaica , South Africa , Trinidad and Tobago , Fiji. Group D: England , Uganda , Scotland, Samoa. She Cranes Probable Starting 7: Stella Nanfuka (GK), Lillian Ajio (GD), Sylvia Nanyonga (WD), Ruth Meeme (C), Betty Kizza (WA), Rachael Nanyonga (GA), Peace Proscovia (GS). |
