Diamonds go up in opposition to Tonga and the group in opening Commonwealth Games netball win in Glasgow

The recreation was by no means going to be shut between the Diamonds and Tonga, however as Uneeq Palavi hit the Griddy on her approach onto court docket, it was clear the consequence was solely a part of the story.

One was the undisputed number-one staff on the earth and defending champions, the opposite was on Games debut.

“[Before the game] we were pretty much telling ourselves ‘oh, we’re gonna beat the diamonds’ but it’s just a hype up to get around,” Palavi mentioned.

“It’s just another step closer to putting our little country on the map and that’s all that matters.”

As is so typically the case, particularly on the Commonwealth Games, the gulf in profile and high quality meant each Australian aim was met with well mannered applause and every Tongan bucket led to cheers normally reserved for contests of considerably extra consequence.

Only 36 hours earlier, the British King and Queen had elicited the same response in the identical venue, Glasgow’s colosseum-like Hydro enviornment.

On Saturday, there was extra royalty in the home, with Tongan Princess Lātūfuipeka Tukuʻaho, albeit sitting with the plebs within the stands, fairly than within the royal field populated by Charles, Camilla and different dignitaries on the opening ceremony.

“I didn’t expect so many Tongans to be out there but that’s the crazy thing, no matter where you are in the world there’s always Tongans to support and I feel like that’s the best thing to have behind us,” Palavi mentioned.

And it wasn’t simply Tongans.

Perched within the higher decks had been Diamonds reserves Amy Parmenter and Jessie Grenvold.

Rather than cheering for his or her ladies in gold, they held an indication studying “Princess Pav”, backing their Melbourne Mavericks teammate.

In the second half, Palavi clocked them and any time she managed to have a second in opposition to the vice-like defence of Jo Weston, Courtney Bruce, Matilda Garrett or Sarah Klau, her eyes went straight as much as them.

“It was good to see their faces to ground myself and remind myself that, although the loss was tough, it’s great to have people around me like that,” she mentioned.

Unfortunately, there weren’t many possibilities for these followers to stand up and about.

Palavi and Lavinia Lavea acquired vanishingly few alternatives within the face of the locked-in, well-oiled defence of the Diamonds.

Stacey Marinkovich rolled out her first-choice seven to start out the match.

By half-time, Tonga had taken 22 photographs for 19 objectives. Australia was 52/55, with six intercepts.

In the second half, Marinkovich rattled via completely different line-ups en path to a 99-38 thumping in a little bit of a check case for later group matches in opposition to England, South Africa, Malawi and Northern Ireland.

For Tonga, issues ought to solely get simpler.

“It wasn’t the best, but to come up against the world’s best it’s obviously gonna be something like that,” Palavi mentioned.

“We’re not a new team but we’re new in this environment. I feel like it’s a lot to come up against the world’s best and put out what we wanted to do, but I feel like we did good regardless.”