England netball vice-captain Amy Carter revealed a team games night was the perfect way for her side to relax and then respond to defeat.
Carter played the first three quarters as England swept past Malawi 73-38 and earn their second win of the Commonwealth Games following a bruising 66-47 defeat to Australia.
The Macclesfield midcourter ensured the squad stayed together after the heavy loss, with some crucial team bonding the key to helping England bounce back as they target a return to the podium at Glasgow 2026.
“At the start of a tournament, a loss isn't actually a bad thing to have,” she said.
“You learn a lot from losses and can definitely grow from them.
“In the last 24 hours, we've looked at video, righted some of the wrongs, connected as a group, had a games night and just spent time together as teammates. We didn't get too bogged down by it because we've got to look forward.
“We played a game called The Mind. You have to try not to speak and put down cards in a random order.
“We also played Mafia, which is a bit like The Traitors. Hali [Adio] really likes playing Mafia and wants to play every time, so normally we get her out first. This time she survived, we thought we'd give her a game.
“You've got to focus on things other than netball as well and build camaraderie around the team. Otherwise, you end up thinking about netball all the time.
“It gives you more perspective, makes you more connected, and helps bring the group together.
“I think that helped our performance. We had a forward focus and wanted to be ruthless.”
Carter is making her Commonwealth Games debut at Glasgow 2026 and has stepped up after she was named as a reserve for the 2023 Netball World Cup.
It continues Carter’s excellent season, which saw her captain AO Manchester Thunder to the Netball Super League title in June.
Carter has started the last two matches for England and will hope to retain her place in the starting VII for the Roses’ clash with Tonga on Wednesday.
Tonga are making their Commonwealth Games debut in Glasgow and Carter is looking forward to facing a new opponent.
“It's really exciting in these tournaments because you play lots of different styles of netball,” she said.
“We've just played an African nation, which is very different from Tonga, who will play more of a zonal defence, probably more similar to a New Zealand style.
“It's nice to play against all these different styles and have that tactical diversity.”
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