The Australian netballers have beaten the Silver Ferns 52 -47 in Palmerston North in the first of two tests.
The New Zealand players were without their captain Casey Williams, who was injured. Veteran goal-keep Leana De Bruin took to the court in her place and combined well with Anna Scarlett in defence.
At half-time the Silver Ferns led by four goals but the Australian Diamonds changed their goal-keep at the break to shut down Irene Van Dyke .
The visitors led by one goal going into the final quarter and stretched that lead to five as New Zealand lost a lot of ball in the attacking circle.
The last time the two sides met was at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi where the Ferns came away with gold medals.
The latest match is being seen as part of the build-up to July's World Championships in Singapore.
