 England are ranked 3rd in the world |
England got their netball world championship campaign off to an encouraging start with a 90-22 win over the Cook Islands. The Cook Islands are ranked just four places below England at seventh in the world, but the gulf in class was obvious.
England are likely to face more searching examinations when they face Fiji on Sunday, and particularly against New Zealand on Tuesday.
New Zealand also started their title bid with an easy win.
The Kiwis won by an even bigger margin, beating Niue 99-11.
Niue, a country of only 2000 inhabitants, had surprised everyone by coming through qualifying, but were out of their depth against the world's second-ranked nation.
Reigning champions Australia also won easily - they beat the USA 73-22.
Fiji and South Africa also got their campaigns off to winning starts, while Scotland and Wales were victorious in the secondary competition that will decide the placings from 13 to 24.
Results
St Lucia 59-41 Grenada
St Vincent 48-38 Antigua
Scotland 42-33 Northern Ireland
Sri Lanka 69-30 Bermuda
Cayman Islands 27-79 Wales
Hong Kong 20-52 Canada
New Zealand 99-11 Niue
South Africa 57-41 Samoa
Fiji 55-49 Barbados
Australia 73-22 USA
England 90-22 Cook Islands
MMIX
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