2015 Netball World Cup: Wales coach hails awesome win over Fiji

Wales captain Suzy Drane and goalkeeper Rosanna Pretorius in action against Fiji

Wales coach Trish Wilcox said the 59-52 win over Fiji was an "awesome start" to their Netball World Cup campaign.

A strong second quarter from Wales laid the foundation for victory against a team ranked one place above them in the world rankings.

"I was really pleased how the girls stepped up the intensity and pushed on into the second half," said Wilcox.

"Fiji came back at us but the girls stuck to their processes and held on for the win."

Wilcox praised a "complete performance" in Sydney, Australia on Friday against the group's top seeds, but gave goal-attack Emma Thomas a special mention.

"She shot at 100% - 28 from 28 - so that's an outstanding performance from her," Wilcox added, whose Wales team are ranked eighth in the world.

"We knew it was going to be close and competitive against Fiji but we were confident what we could do against them.

"It was really pleasing the processes were followed and applied and we came out with a really strong win.

"It's huge in terms of morale and confidence. We had a good camp in Tasmania with two wins from three in our preparation games, so it's fantastic to carry on that momentum.

"So in that respect the win has made a huge difference."

A top-two finish in Pool D, with games against Zambia and Uganda to follow, will see Wales qualify for the First Eight phase of the competition.

They play Zambia on Sunday, who were well beaten 74-38 by Uganda on the opening day of the tournament. Their final group game will be against Uganda on Monday.

Wales Netball World Cup squad:

Suzy Drane (capt), Rosie Pretorius, Sara Bell, Bethan Dyke, Nic James, Kyra Jones, Lateisha Kidner, Chelsea Lewis, Kelly Morgan, Georgia Rowe, Emma Thomas, Stephanie Williams.