After an "extremely difficult" year, Tori Moorby has produced the breakthrough performance of her career.

The New Zealander won silver in the women's javelin at the Commonwealth Games on Saturday - her first major championship medal.

The Hamilton-based athlete threw 60.04m to finish second behind Australia's Mackenzie Little, whose opening-round effort of 61.88m proved enough for gold.

Kenya's Irene Jepkemboi claimed bronze.

For Moorby, the silver medal improved on her fifth-place finish in Birmingham four years ago.

While Moorby claimed the Oceania title in Darwin earlier this year, she had been searching for a breakthrough medal at the sport's biggest international championships.

Following the event, a delighted Moorby struggled to put her feelings into words.

"I don't really know what to say. I've got a silver medal, what the heck," she told Sky Sport.

"This year has been extremely difficult for me. I went out there tonight and believed that I could bring home some silverware and I have.

"It's an awesome feeling and I'm so proud."

Moorby's silver rounded out a strong athletics campaign for New Zealand, taking the team's medal haul to seven.

The tally included memorable gold medals to Zoe Hobbs in the women's 100m and Eliza McCartney in the women's pole vault.

Tom Walsh (shot put) and Lauren Bruce (hammer throw) also won silver, while Anna Grimaldi (para 100m) and Imogen Ayris (pole vault) collected bronze.

Elsewhere on the final day of track and field competition, Sam Tanner finished ninth in a star-studded men's Commonwealth mile final.

The event returned to the Commonwealth Games programme for the first time in 60 years and attracted one of the strongest fields assembled for the discipline, featuring three of the last four world champions.

Scotland's Josh Kerr entered the race fresh from his world-record 3min 42.66sec performance at the London Diamond League two weeks earlier.

Tanner found himself boxed in through the opening laps of the tactical race and was unable to work into contention as the pace lifted over the final circuit.

Roared on by a capacity crowd at Scotstoun Stadium, Kerr found clear running with 400 metres remaining before surging away to claim gold. Australia's Cameron Myers took silver, while Kenya's Timothy Cheruiyot secured bronze.

In the men's pole vault, New Zealand's Nick Southgate and James Steyn endured a frustrating final, finishing seventh and eighth respectively, with a best height of 5.10m.