Thu | Feb 5, 2026

Now or never for Sunshine Girls, says Sterling

Published:Tuesday | July 26, 2022 | 12:09 AMRobert Bailey/Gleaner Writer
Jamaica’s goalkeeper Shamera Sterling (top right) goes high to defend ahead of Scotland goal shooter Emma Barrie (left), while Jamaica’s Adean Thomas (second left) and Lynsey Gallagher(GA) look on during their Vitaly Netball World Cup Group G game at t
File
Jamaica’s goalkeeper Shamera Sterling (top right) goes high to defend ahead of Scotland goal shooter Emma Barrie (left), while Jamaica’s Adean Thomas (second left) and Lynsey Gallagher(GA) look on during their Vitaly Netball World Cup Group G game at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England in 2019.

With the Sunshine Girls set to bow into action at the 2022 Commonwealth Games on Friday, vice captain of the team, Shamera Sterling, says it is “now or never” for the team as they look to make it into the final of the championships. The...

With the Sunshine Girls set to bow into action at the 2022 Commonwealth Games on Friday, vice captain of the team, Shamera Sterling, says it is “now or never” for the team as they look to make it into the final of the championships.

The Sunshine Girls, who won bronze at the 2018 championships in Gold Coast, Australia, have assembled a very strong 12-member squad for this year’s tournament after they finished a disappointing fifth at the 2019 Netball World Cup in Liverpool, England.

The team includes six players, who recently competed in the Australian Suncorp Super Netball League competition.

In addition to Sterling, the other overseas-based players are captain Jhaniele Fowler, Shimona Nelson, Latanya Wilson, Kadie-Ann Dehaney and Jodi-Ann Ward. The other members of the squad are Shanice Beckford, Adean Thomas, Shadian Hemmings, Nicole Dixon-Rochester, Rebeckah Robinson and Khadijah Williams.

“Right now for me, I think it is now or never because if we don’t make it to the grand final of the Commonwealth Games, then I don’t know when it will be,” said Sterling.

PLAY CONSISTENT

“I am pretty excited and we are looking forward to it and I know that my team can do it but only if we play consistent throughout the tour,” she said.

Sterling, who is rated as one of the best defenders in the world, pointed out that the team has done well in their preparations heading into the tournament and therefore everyone is feeling very confident and raring to go.

“We have a group of the players that are very talented individually and I feel that a lot of work has been put into getting us to know how to play with each other and so I am really confident in the preparations that we have done leading up to this Commonwealth Games,” she said.

“I think we just have to play disciplined netball and we just have to be very consistent and know that any team we come against that we will be able to beat them,” Sterling said.

On Friday’s opening day of competition in netball, Jamaica will play Wales. Three other matches are scheduled for Friday – England vs Trinidad and Tobago; Australia vs Barbados and New Zealand vs Northern Ireland. Jamaica will play their second match against South Africa on Saturday, July 30.