Gauteng Fireballs shoot their way to the top

The Golden Fireballs are determined to change their status of being the lesser team in Gauteng by dominating this season’s Telkom Netball League. Since the launch of the semi professional league in 2014, the Fireballs have been playing second fiddle to their provincial rivals, the Gauteng Jaguars. In the nine years of the competition, they have only managed to finish on the podium only three times, 2014, 2017 and recently, 2020. And it was all for a bronze medal.

However, the Fireballs performance in the Power Week held at the Olive Convention Centre in Durban exhibited a different side that hasn't been seen in a while. The Dr. Elsje Jordaan led team is showing grit and a fighting spirit that hasn’t been seen in a while, this saw them go on top of the Division One table having won all four matches. Their 43-29 victory over rivals Jaguars had the netball community on the edge of its seat. Coach Jordaan says it’s time that the Fireballs rise to the top.

“We came together as a group and we said we want to change the story of the Fireballs and we thought that this is the group that can do that. So the players are really committed and we are working hard. It’s really a happy unit. I hope people can see that the players play for one another when they are out there on the court and they are really having fun. So for us, that is massively important, to reach our goals, to enjoy it and play for one another,” she says.

Jordaan says although one of their goals is to go all the way, they are not focusing on dethroning the Jaguars who have won the competition five times in a row.

“On its own it’s not a goal for us at all. It’s just another team we really respect so much. They’ve got seven Proteas in their line up so it’s a very competitive team and we respect them a lot but for us it’s about our own process and our own goals. If that then is how we change the power and move to the Fireballs, that would be a bonus to us but for us it’s about playing a brand of netball that we can be proud of. Yes, the Jaguars are a great team and a great unit, they have been very competitive for the nine years and we respect them for that but hopefully, this year will be the year that the Fireballs can celebrate a lot of things,” adds Jordaan.

Players to look out for (Fireballs):

Bongiwe Msomi

Not only is Msomi the captain of the Fireballs, but she is also the captain of the national team, the Spar Proteas. She boasts over 126 national caps. She led the national team to the top four of the 2019 Netball World Cup for only the second time since the 1995 edition. It is her pace, agility and ability to find spaces on the court makes her one of the most lethal players in the team. She certainly leads the team from the front

Monique Reyneke

Although Reyneke made her senior debut only in 2019 during the Africa Netball Cup in Cape Town, she has also become a regular player for the national team. Her leadership skills got her the captain’s armband in the Baby Proteas team. The Fireballs defensive circle is in safe hands with her around and as vice captain to Msomi.

Jessica du Plessis

Another key player in the team is du Plessis. Her international career is fairly young as she only received her first call up for the Spar Proteas in 2021 ahead of the Margaret Backford Sunshine Series which was due to take place in Jamaica but later cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Netball South Africa invited continental rivals, Malawi as a substitute for the test. She is also a former junior the captain of the SA Under-20 side that won the 2016 Africa Union Sport Council Region 5 Games in Angola.

It has to be expected that the Jaguars will fight back and try to take their place at the top of the throne of Division One when the action returns to complete the first round of the competition. Coach Rozanne Matthyse will want to finish the first round of the competition back at the top when the competition returns to their home territory and get one over the Southern Sting on Saturday before some her top players such as Izette Griesel, Tshina Mdau and Marlize de Bruin go to the national team as the Spar Proteas take on the men’s Proteas side in an exhibition match on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Eastern Cape Aloes will be looking to continue their impressive start in Division Two as they face Western Cape Tornadoes and the Northern Cape Diamond in the first weekend at the Heartfelt Arena in Pretoria. Aloes are the only other side to have not tasted defeat in the competition so far.

The KwaZulu Natal Kingdom Stars will continue the rest of the tournament without their star wing attack Kalipa Gibisela who’s out on an injury after she tore her anterior cruciate ligament, medial collateral ligament and meniscus. She will be out for the rest of the season.