JAMAICA’S Sunshine Girl Adean Thomas believes the recent netball series against Trinidad and Tobago was just what she and her teammates needed after a lengthy spell of inactivity.

The world number four-ranked Jamaicans, who before the T&T assignment had last tasted international action in January 2020, romped to straightforward victories in all three contests against their 10th-ranked Caribbean rivals at the National Indoor Sports Centre.

“The team’s performance was good. We haven’t been together for long [because] most players are on contracts overseas. So just to get everyone together in less than two weeks, preparing for a tournament and to come out and give our best says a lot about us as a team,” Thomas, 27, told the Jamaica Observer.

“We haven’t been playing any international Tests so even though Trinidad aren’t ranked amongst the top five, playing them gives us an idea as to what we need to work on, both individually and as a team before going to England,” she added, referring to the three-match series versus the third-ranked English women next month.

In the opening match against Trinidad and Tobago’s Calypso Girls last week Saturday, the hosts cantered to a 71-22 win before wrapping up the series with similarly lopsided 64-32 and 73-22 triumphs on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

Throughout the series, Thomas, playing centre and at wing attack on occasions, was typically industrious in mid-court and hardly put a foot wrong. She broke up numerous T&T forays and sparked incisive counter-attacks for the Sunshine Girls.

The robust but deceptively small player said she was guided along by her teammates and Head Coach Connie Francis.

“I was effective because I followed instructions — whether it was from the girls on the court or Coach Connie Francis — and I was assessing the game,” she explained.

“I am satisfied with my performance. I stepped up in each game, which was a big plus for me. There’s still a bit more work to be done before England, and that’s my main focus right now,” Thomas, who plays for London Pulse in United Kingdom’s Vitality Netball Superleague, said.

She noted that with every step the Sunshine Girls are looking sharper as they prepare for next summer’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.

“It feels good to be back. The chemistry is getting better and better and we are all working hard to achieve the same goal,” she noted.

Jamaica won bronze at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, which was staged in Gold Coast area of Australia.