The Gauteng Jaguars were up against the North West Flames in the opening game of day four of the Telkom Netball League in Pretoria. It was a fourth consecutive victory for the Jaguars after beating the Flames 57-29. Jaguars coach- Jenny van Dyk rested her shooter- Alice Kennon as well as defender- Jamie van Wyk for this game ahead of their crucial encounter against the Crinums on Friday. The Flames’ conversion rate was below par as they were unable to hold on to the ball and make their turnovers count which is an area of concern for coach- Lizelle Erasmus, ‘’Silly mistakes are costing us. We work so hard to turnaround the ball, but we are unable to look after it. The young bunch is trying so if we can get more clinical and have more patience because they want to pace themselves against the other team, that will cut out the silly mistakes’’.
Meanwhile, the Tornados were able to redeem themselves today against the Eastern Cape Comets following their 45-23 win. Danlee Matthews’ team took a 5-0 lead in the first four minutes of the game and were solid throughout the match and dominated the Comets attacking side. Comets Goalkeeper and captain- Juanita Van Tonder put her heart and soul into this game, stealing those intercepts in the Tornados shooting circle but was not rewarded for her efforts upfront. The Comets started their campaign on a positive note after winning their first game but have now gone on to lose two successive games.
The Kingdom Stars won their first game in the competition 46-38 against the Golden Fireballs in the third match of the day. The Stars’ defense flustered the Fireballs attack by stealing those balls and nineteen-year-old, Owethu Ngubane sealed those opportunities by converting their chances. The Fireballs attempted to make a comeback in the third quarter by closing the gap to six goals, but the KZN side was just too vehement. Ngubane earned herself the player of the match accolade after an awe-inspiring performance.
Stars coach- Marguerite Rootman couldn’t hold back her tears, ‘It is an extremely proud moment for me, it has really been a bumpy ride until now because it was difficult to find the combinations but to see them coming together as a team today and to see a youngster like Owethu coming through the way that she did. She Is currently in school and has to go back now to right an exam, I don’t know how she is going to write that exam, but I am elated’’.
