Okay, we're going to wrap the blog for now. Thank you for tuning in! More analysis on Game 1 will be added above once we collect our thoughts.

We'll be back to blog the second Test in Christchurch on Wednesday night so be sure to check that out for your mid-week fix of netty! Catch you then.

It's not the result she wanted, especially finishing on the bench, but Aussie goal keeper Courtney Bruce reflected on reaching the milestone with Sky Sport. It is a huge deal, as only seven players have done it before throughout history.

"It's such a credit to the person I am and the little girl that dreamed of playing for the Diamonds. To do it one time is the best so getting to do it 100 times is absolutely incredible."

Bruce's mother and father made the trip from Perth to cheer her on in Auckland. (Getty)

Sharing the occasion with debutant Jessie Grenvold was fun.

"Jessie is great, she's really confident, she's such an exciting young talent. I think she's going to do incredible things. It's funny, we had Selina Gilsenan in the other night and she said when she played her first Test, Liz was playing her 100th so Jessie has been calling me her Liz Ellis. Excited to see her out there."

Agreed. To be fair, Watson was playing out of position to start the game and maybe that's on the coaching staff. Price has been the best centre in Super Netball for a few years and if Moloney isn't available then it seems silly to look beyond her for that position.

I think all of those things are true but it shouldn't be an excuse for the Diamonds. They also get to play against the imports week in, week out. As much as the Australian team was spooked in attack I also think this result is a symptom of poor tactics and decision making with the players they have.

By the end of the game the Diamonds were catching the umpire's eye a lot more than New Zealand. The Aussies finished with 61 total penalies and again, part of that was down to them being in chase mode the entire 60 minutes. But it was also poor discipline in defence. Getting three feet before you put your hand up is an easy fix they can work on for the next game. Considering how many mistakes the Diamonds made in attack their general play turnover stat wasn't too different suprisingly to the winning side. They just need to make their own centre pass count.

(Champion Data)

And you can see that rings true here with their centre pass to goal rate only at 68 per cent. At least they scored off their gains but the coaches and defenders will really have to put their heads together and come up with some better ideas to shut down Nweke and win ball back. A 12-6 gain stat in favour of the Kiwis shows how dominant they were defensively and how powerless the Aussies were in comparison. In the shooting department, the Diamonds did recover once Sophie Garbin made her way on. She scored 20 of her 21 attempts across 30 minutes and helped improve the team's overall accuracy to 82 per cent by the end of the match. This was her 50th Test match and she started on the bench. Maybe she's won Marinkovich over enough to start Game 2?

(Champion Data)

A penalty shot for the Silver Ferns sees them out by six goals at the final whistle. That's their 11th consecutive victory against the Diamonds on home soil.

The Diamonds will be proud of the way they fought back to win the fourth quarter 17-11. Especially with goal aggregate back to determine the winner of this series. That could make all the difference at the end of game four in who lifts the trophy.

But make no mistake, this was an absolute spanking for much of the match. The Australian coaching staff will really need to go back to the drawing board. Whether Kate Moloney is back and fit to play might help the decision making. But if she isn't they'll have to ask some serious questions about captain Watson. Has she done enough to hold onto her starting spot? Probably not based on this game alone. Price deserves to start at centre in our opinion. The Kiwis were so unbelievably fit and fast and Australia needs midcourters that can match that pace.

There also seems to be a reluctance from the Diamonds staff to shift Horjus into goal attack. During the Super Netball season what makes her so lethal as a WA / GA swing is when she has the opportunity to push into the circle in the back half of games. Maybe Marinkovich worrie about her height against the long-limbed Silver Ferns defenders? But she manages to hold her own just fine in the domestic competition. At 172cm tall she is 12cm shorter than captain Burger and 20cm shorter than Jackson.  It is an option they haven't properly explored yet and Horjus is a game winner.

Lastly, Donnell Wallam hasn't had a proper run for the Diamonds in years. She has the X-factor and brings something different than Garbin and Koenen. Could her extra height (193cm) and unpredictability be the difference Australia needs?

A bold move from the debutant. At goal keeper, Grenvold comes out for a screamer and her Diamonds teammates edge another back with a little over two minutes left.

SCORE: New Zealand leads 53-48

A mistake by Burger hands an opportunity to Australia and they're careful not to waste it at the midway point of the quarter. But they're going to run out of time to claw this game back and we doubt whether they've got the puff to do it anyway.

SCORE: New Zealand leads 48-41

Price and Parmenter squeeze Kate Heffernan as she tries to recieve the ball on cricle edge and she falls into the goal circle. Landing on her side. Instead of a contact call it's an offside call against the Kiwi. Australia take the gift and run with it. Adding a goal to their tally.

SCORE: New Zealand lead 46-36

Isn't it crazy! Seems like there's a lot of head noise for the Diamonds but we also know they haven't won in NZ since 2021 and in Auckland apparently since 2019. There's a serious hoodoo going on and good on New Zealand for showing up the way they have today. Backing up their gold medal in Glasgow.

On the transverse line, Austin has a crack at a ball that was meant to reset the New Zealand attack. She sticks her hand out and deflects the ball into the clutches of Price. The Aussies convert the opportunity and edge another back with their next centre pass.

SCORE: New Zealand lead 44-33

Things are just going from bad to worse for the Diamonds. They are scrambling. There are errors happening right across the court. It is not coherent netball. Garbin tries to push free and find some space off the body of Jackson but it's spotted by the umpire.

SCORE: New Zealand lead 42-27

We spoke to soon ... New Zealand reassert themselves in the contest. Australia responds by re-injecting Austin in the game at GA to shoot alongside her Vixens teammate Garbin. Dwyer heads to the bench right before the halfway point of the quarter.

SCORE: New Zealand lead 39-25

Can we mount a comeback? More changes have happened in the break to Australia's line-up. Sophie Garbin gets her first minutes at goal shooter, while Price finally does move into centre sending the Aussie captain to the bench. They're making a difference already as the Diamonds score three goals in a row to begin the third quarter.

Meanwhile, NZ have also tinkered with their team. They're trialling some new options while they have such a big hold on the game. Kate Heffernan rolls into centre, where we've seen her dominate throughout the Super Netball season for the Adelaide Thunderbirds. Reuelu-Buchanan is now in WD. Selby-Rickit plays her first match for the Silver Ferns in years as she dons the GA bib.

SCORE: New Zealand leads 32-25