England were narrowly defeated 58-52 at the hands of the netball world champions Australia at the Echo Arena in Liverpool last night (Wednesday), their first home defeat in five against the Diamonds.

Over 5,000 netball enthusiasts and fans attended in Liverpool to witness the first clash in the three-match series between bitter rivals, England and Australia.

There was to be no starting place for Hertfordshire Mavericks’ defender Lindsay Keable.

The upcoming two matches will be held at the Copper Box Arena in London, where Keable will hope to earn her opportunity a little closer to home.

The Mavericks star is itching to make an appearance in this mouth-watering series, ahead of the domestic league season, stating before the series that the series is “really exciting” and that she believes England can beat Australia.

Her bold and brave prediction of a 2-1 series victory for the Roses is under threat, but she hopes to make an impact and be the difference for her country.

Keable may not have appeared in the opening match, but former Mavericks captain and Keable’s ex-clubmate, Sasha Corbin, was a starter for England, however the Loughborough Lightning star was unable to drive England to victory.

England will be hoping that in the next contest they can build on any lead they may take during the game, having led only once throughout the first contest, 23-22 midway into the second quarter.

Australia were to restore their advantage and went on to become 52-58 victors, despite the possibility of a late comeback during the final quarter, where the Roses closed the Diamonds lead from seven to just three points.

The difference turned out to be the match winner, player of the match, Sharni Layton.