Netball World Cup final 2023 score, result, highlights as Australia dominate gold medal match against England

Joe Wright

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Netball World Cup final 2023 score, result, highlights as Australia dominate gold medal match against England image

Australia were crowned kings of netball for the 12th time on Sunday as they beat England 61-45 in the Netball World Cup final.

The Diamonds overcame Jamaica in the semifinals on Saturday to keep up their remarkable record of having never failed to reach the final in the tournament's history.

England defeated Australia during the group stage this week and eliminated reigning champions New Zealand in the last four to reach the final for the first time. They battled well in the early stages, but after a first quarter that ended 13-13, the contest was never really in their grasp.

Eleanor Cardwell was excellent in England's attack, but she could do little other than chip away at the deficit as Australia pulled away on the scoreboard. Courtney Bruce and Ash Brazill, playing in her final professional match, typified the Diamonds' dominant play with exceptional work off the ball, and their clinical use of possession simply never waivered. Once a solid lead was theirs, they never gave England a sniff, the star performance from Kiera Austin highlighting their strength in depth.

The final quarter turned into something of a celebration as the Roses accepted they were chasing a lost cause, although they kept pushing right until the final buzzer. A huddle of both sets of players underlined the positive spirit in which the gold-medal match was played, before Australia were left alone to celebrate on court.

"I'm never playing netball again, that's for sure," said Brazill afterwards. "How can I top this?"

MORE: Netball World Cup prize money: How much will the winners make?

The Sporting News provided live updates from the 2023 Netball World Cup final below.

England vs. Australia final score

  Score
England 45
Australia 61

England vs. Australia live updates, commentary from Netball World Cup final

Fulltime: England 44-60 Australia

Australia are the world champions yet again! They are now 12-time winners of the Netball World Cup and the undisputed top international side in the world. England battled gamely in their first ever final, but they were second best.

58th min: Bruce nails ANOTHER interception as the ball sails towards Cardwell. The Australia bench is already on their feet and enjoying these closing moments.

57th min: Cardwell has given everything to England's cause — in fact, she's just clattered into the post while trying to keep the ball in play. Australia are still working the ball expertly and taking every opportunity for a goal.

55th min: It would be absolutely remarkable if Australia failed to win from here. England are still putting up a fight, but this has been a lesson in gold-medal matchplay. You'd expect nothing less from the 11-time champions.

52nd min: Sophie Garbin steals a pass meant for Mentor, and Australia stretch the lead to 12. Cardwell scores again, but time is rapidly running out for the Roses.

50th min: We have an exchange of missed attempts this time — fatigue is just starting to take its toll. England look to bring the gap back to nine, but Bruce, yet again, makes a timely interception. She did it against Jamaica, and she's done it today.

49th min: Pitman steals back the ball after an England turnover, but unless they stop this Australia attack more often, this one is over. It's been a brave performance from the first-time finalists, but they've been up against a class outfit in Cape Town.

46th min: After an early exchange of goals, Australia turn the ball over from an England centre pass. Kiera Austin makes it 11/11 as she extends the lead to... 11.

Here we go with the fourth quarter...

End of third quarter — England 36-46 Australia

The Diamonds won that quarter by six goals to open up a 10-goal gap heading into the final quarter. They've been disciplined and clinical, and this last half-hour has been a pleasure to watch.

44th min: Cardwell's finishing has been sensational, but it's not enough right now for England. They've twice been called for held ball, most recently through Nat Metcalfe, who just had no option for the pass. Chelsea Pitman is now ON for the Roses — can she make another telling impact?

40th min: Ash Brazill makes a brilliant interception, although the ball goes out of play anyway. Cardwell scores a fine goal off balance on one leg, but Australia are scoring with every opportunity. The Roses just aren't being given a chance to close the gap.

38th min: A pretty clear instruction from the umpire, there: "Goal defence — NO." Layla Guscoth can consider herself warned!

36th min: Mentor is already back on for England and she helps force a turnover within seconds. The Roses needed that. They've got to start eating into this Australia lead, or the world's best side could quickly move out of sight.

34th min: A loose pass from Cardwell sees England turn over the ball, and Australia stretch their lead to five. The Diamonds get another goal from the restart, before substitute Sarah Klau gets a tip with her first touch off the bench! Australia are rocking and rolling now.

31st minute: Housby misses the first shot of the second half, but she cleans up on the rebound. England have made some more defensive changes, including Funmi Fadoju, who's on for the veteran Geva Mentor.

The third quarter is underway!

Halftime: Australia's Kiera Austin adds: "It has been a really intense battle, a lot of physicality. We need a constant drive to take the two off Soph [Garbin] and hopefully I can provide that."

Halftime: Fran Williams tells the BBC that England have "definitely got another gear to go into". Can they do it?

End of second quarter — England 23-27 Australia

Sophie Garbin misses an attempt that would've given Australia a six-goal lead at the buzzer. England are able to close the gap back to four, but as things stand, they're looking at the silver medal. Mind you, when England won the group game against the Diamonds, they trailed by six at halftime...

28th min: Courtney Bruce gets a steal and suddenly the momentum has shifted — Australia now lead by four heading into the final minute of the first half.

26th min: Weston scraps for a turnover just as England were looking to level the scores. The gap has been two goals throughout much of the quarter, so moments like that could be key.

24th min: Australia head coach Stacey Marinkovich has spoken on the BBC's broadcast: "We haven't really changed style, we are just trying to execute what we are good at.

"It is a tight tussle out there, there's a lot of bodies and we just need to try and keep in the line of the ball."

23rd min: A couple of contentious calls against Australia, first after the ball went out and then for contact on the shooter. England won't complain.

21st min: Australia are doing a fine job of forcing England back during possession, but, so far, the Roses are finding a way to keep in touch. This is going to come down to the tiniest margins.

19th min: Jo Weston gets the tip on Housby and Australia capitalise. It's Wood again, and the Diamonds lead by two.

16th min: The second quarter is underway. Housby starts us off by putting England ahead. Steph Wood levels. And levels again.

End of first quarter — England 13-13 Australia

14th min: Fran Williams was an early change, and she's made a real impact in disrupting Australia's rhythm. Helen Housby turns over the ball as England seek a first-quarter lead, but she sinks a pressure shot just before the buzzer. We're level after 15 minutes.

12th min: For the first time, Australia's possession play is a little loose. England make no mistake this time, crossing the court with speed and precision twice to score.

10th min: England get their first turnover but can't make the most of it — Australia steal back possession near the centre circle. This has been what you'd call a championship performance from the Diamonds early on.

8th min: As you'd expect, the standard has been high so far. It's a little less physical than Australia's semifinal with Jamaica, but the vast majority of passes and shots have been on point. Just as I say that, Cardwell puts a toe out of court, and Australia capitalise to move three clear.

4th min: England have settled after that nervy opening. They nearly get a timely interception, but Koenen just holds on to score. Cardwell gets one back and urges the crowd to make some noise.

2nd min: Australia get a turnover and they're on the scoreboard first. Cara Koenen then makes it 2-0, before Eleanor Cardwell gets England on the board.

We're underway in the 2023 Netball World Cup final!

15 mins to go: England goalkeeper Geva Mentor will be retiring from international netball after today's game. She's won 174 caps and played in six World Cups, and she'll be playing for Leeds Rhinos in the netball Super League in 2024. Not bad for a 38-year-old who's spent 22 years in the game.

30 mins to go: England overcame holders New Zealand in their semifinal match, while Australia won a thriller against New Zealand. The Diamonds have reached every single final since the inaugural tournament in 1963... but they did lose to England during the group stage.

1 hour to go: Here we go, then — the Netball World Cup final. Australia, yet again, are here to compete for the gold medal; England will do so for the very first time.

What time is England vs Australia in the Netball World Cup final?

The 2023 Netball World Cup final will take place at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town, South Africa on Sunday, August 6.

Here's what time the final starts across some of the major territories:

  Start time
UK 5 p.m. BST
Australia 2 a.m. AEST*
Singapore 12 a.m. SGT*
New Zealand 4 a.m. NZDT*

*Game starts on August 7 in these time zones

England vs Australia Netball World Cup live stream, TV channel

Here's how to watch all of the action from this match in some of the major territories:

  TV channel Streaming
UK Sky Sports Arena, BBC Two Sky GO, BBC iPlayer
Australia SBS Viceland SBS on Demand
New Zealand Sky NZ, Prime SKY GO, Prime
Singapore — NetballPass

UK: The final will be carried across Sky Sports and the BBC, with selected matches also available to stream on the Sky Sports YouTube channel.

Australia: SBS will be showing the final live and free for Australian fans.

New Zealand: Sky and Prime will be airing the final for free, with Sky chief executive Sophie Moloney calling the World Cup "the pinnacle event for netball".

Singapore: NetballPass streams all of the action for supporters in Singapore, including live match statistics for viewers who register.

England vs Australia Netball World Cup final squads

England: Imogen Alison, Eleanor Cardwell, Jade Clarke, Funmi Fadoju, Layla Guscoth, Helen Housby, Laura Malcolm, Geva Mentor, Natalie Metcalf, Chelsea Pitman, Olivia Tchine, Fran Williams

Reserves: Halimat Adio, Amy Carter, Sophie Drakeford-Lewis

Australia: Sunday Aryang, Kiera Austin, Ash Brazill, Courtney Bruce, Sophie Garbin, Paige Hadley, Sarah Klau, Cara Koenen, Jamie-Lee Price, Liz Watson, Joanna Weston, Steph Wood

Reserves: Ruby Bakewell-Doran, Kate Moloney, Donnell Wallam

Netball World Cup final betting odds

Odds accurate as of August 6

  Unibet
Australia 4/11
England 15/8

Joe Wright

Joe Wright Photo

Joe is a Senior Editor at Sporting News. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has reported live on some of the biggest games in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup final at the end of a month in Russia.