Helen Housby and England have been urged to take defeat to Australia on the chin and come back stronger for the Commonwealth Games.

The Cumbrian netball star and her Vitality Roses team-mates went down to defeat to Australia in the Quad Series final in London.

It saw the Aussies land a blow on their rivals ahead of this summer’s Games, when Housby and England will be defending their title.

The clash at London’s Copper Box Arena saw England in front by 41-40 going into the last quarter.

But the Australian Diamonds responded with 18 points to England’s five in the closing stages.

It led to a 58-46 victory for Australia.

Housby, from Drumleaning near Wigton, played a key role for England throughout the Quad Series, contributing to victories over South Africa and New Zealand.

She also held her nerve to secure a dramatic draw in the final seconds against Australia on Tuesday.

But it wasn’t to be for the Cumbrian and her colleagues on Wednesday night.

England head coach Jess Thirlby, speaking on Sky Sports afterwards, said: “There have to be learnings taken.

“If you want to be at the top table, then you have to win and lose and take it on the chin.

“You have to move on and take the learnings for much bigger stages down the line."

The coach, though, maintained that England had gone down fighting against the world leaders.

She added: “The last quarter is certainly not the 15 minutes that we need to focus on. What we’ve done this week in the Quad Series has been incredible and I’m really proud of the group.”