Van der Merwe still has years of international netball for Proteas

Spar Proteas defender, Shadine van der Merwe says she dreams of representing South Africa for a lot more years to come.

The former Surrey Storm player last donned the green and gold at the 2023 Netball World Cup and missed out on the 2024 squad under new coach, Jenny van Dyk. Van der Merwe says she is still far from retiring from international netball. In January Netball South Africa has invited thirty players to a training and selection camp where 15 players were selected for new Proteas contracts. Van der Merwe was not part of 30 that was invited to the to the Stellenbosch Academy of Sports. She says although she was not part of the camp, she is still available to don the green and gold in the future.

“The reason I was not selected was that I was not at the trials at the beginning of the year, that was the main thing. I was taking a break after the World Cup but not necessarily announcing anything about retirement. I am still available (for selection), just because I missed the trials at the beginning of this year meant I was not eligible for selection,” says the experienced defender.

The launch of the new NSL marks a new direction towards the professionalisation of the sport in the UK, some of the significant changes is that there will be two fewer teams taking part in the competition, reducing the number from 10 to eight clubs. This will also have crucial implications for the number of South African players who can secure contracts. The 2024 season saw South Africa have a total of nine players in the competition, the highest number of players the country has had in one season. Strathclyde Sirens and Severn Stars are some of the teams that will be missing out on the new NSL, these sides were home to Owethu Ngubane, Sigi Burger, and Lefebre Rademan respectively this season.

“I think it’s great that South African players can showcase their talent here. For example, Samantha (Ngubane) got the opportunity to play at Sirens and immediately stepped up almost like a senior because she had to take the role of leading the attacking end. She learned so much and she has grown not only as a player but just as a human as well. I am really proud of how she has gained so much from this experience and you could see she showed me a thing or two in the game we played against them. I also think with all the other players to be able to experience it (NSL) was good,” she says.

Van Merwe says although the next few months will be nerve wracking, she hopes she will return to compete in the UK. The signing window for next season is currently open and will run until the end of August.

“I think it gets difficult because it has been cut down to eight teams, 10 players, and with the import rule as well. It will be difficult for not only us South Africans but a lot of players will miss out on opportunities. It has its pros and cons, a lot of players will miss out but it will also strengthen the league as well. It is going to be interesting to see and there will be a lot of changes in the teams. Next year will be the first trial of how the NSL 2.0 is going to look.

I really do hope that South African players get an opportunity to play over here even with the limited spaces. I feel like we are still capable of playing in this league. Things can change overnight and you should never be comfortable in your spot but I think things can change and it is a stressful period for all the players, staff, and coaches. I am hopeful that I can get an opportunity to play in the NSL 2.0, I would be very happy,” she explains.

The former Adelaide Thunderbirds was contracted to Manchester Thunder and played for the club for the third season in a row in 2024. She was part of the team that won the gold medal in the 2022 season after with a perfect record from winning all 20 of their regular season games and powering through the semis and eventually the title.

Thunder had finished top of the league this season but could not get one over Loughborough Lightning in the NSL Grand Final. Lightning secured their third title in four years.

“It was really a good season but not the result we wanted in the end. I think we played good netball and I have gained so much. I was able to play every game and train in every session whereas in the past two seasons, I had a few injuries. I am just so grateful that I could play every match and enjoyed the netball,” she says.