The Telkom Netball League fourth leg action continued at the Heartfelt Arena in Pretoria today. There were three division two matches on the cards, the Western Cape Tornados got the day underway with a narrow 49-45 victory over the Mpumalanga Sunbirds. Both teams were in search of a win after losing to the Limpopo Baobabs in their previous encounters. Tornados Goal Shooter- Liandre Schoeman totally stood her ground against the experienced Palesa Mbukwana to lead the team to victory while the Sunbirds struggled to find a working combination in the shooting circle that also added to them falling short in the end.
Meanwhile, it was a tough day in the office for the Baobabs who succumbed to a 61-35 drubbing against the unbeaten Eastern Cape Aloes. For the Aloes, it was all about giving players game time and trying out new combinations and the Limpopo side were hoping to build on yesterday’s sublime performance against the Sunbirds but the Aloes had a different plan to deter them from achieving that despite both teams sitting on a seventy-six-goal percentage at full-time.
Meanwhile, the Kingdom Queens returned back to winning ways with a much-improved performance against the Diamonds and beat them 39-36. The Queens led from start to finish even though they were dealt with an injury blow after Wing Defense-Simphiwe Mhlanga was stretched off the court. The Diamonds found their groove towards the last quarter but left it too late as they were unable to pull themselves over the line.
In Division one, the North West Flames left it all on court to come out tops in one of their strongest comebacks to secure a 54-49 win. The Stars occupied the driver’s seat in the first half and took a three-goal lead, however the Flames turned the tide in the third quarter following the return of Michelle Geduld on Centre and the introduction of Tlotlang Mokomela on Wing Attack. The ball flowed seemingly down court, partnered up with some decorative feeds that Elmere Van der Berg and Lucy Strydom easily converted. Stars Goal Defense- Jeante Strydom worked tirelessly for the key turnovers earning herself the player of the match accolade but her side still found themselves on the losing end.
In the last match of the day, the Fireballs found their spark following the Gauteng Derby defeat and beat the Southern Stings 68-38. The Stings led a low scoring first quarter and Fireballs coach- Dr Elsje Jordaan responded with a moving circle that saw Olwethu Ngubane and Nomfundo Mngomezulu taking over Chante Louw and Jessica Du Plessis in the shooting circle. The changes steered the Fireballs to an emphatic twenty-six goal lead in the third quarter. It was Mngomezulu’s eighty-seven goal percentage that sealed the envelope for the Fireballs, who have now claimed back their number one spot in division one.
Full results:
Tornados 49-45 Sunbirds
Queens 39-36 Diamonds
Baobabs 35-61 Aloes
Flames 54-49 Stars
Fireballs 68-38 Stings
Sunday (05/06/2022) Fixtures:
08:00- Comets vs Tornados
10:00- Flames vs Crinums
