Netball WC prep ‘going according to plan’

In just less than a year, South Africa will be hosting the Netball World Cup at the International Convention Centre in the heart of Cape Town, the first time in 60 years that the competition will be played on African soil. The launch of #NetballFridays is one of the ways to build up the excitement around the tournament but it is also just as important to have the people from the City of Cape Town also ready to receive the world. The tournament is set for 28 July – 6 August.

Netball South Africa has been working closely with the city and the LOC to ensure that South Africa is ready for the tournament. NSA president, Cecilia Molokwane says all is going according to plan.

"We are in the right path. We are very much ready. People are aware that World Netball were here on the weekend, I hosted them in Cape Town. I can tell you that they were happy for the progress that we have made as a country that will be hosting the World Cup. A lot has been done, a lot of people have been appointed on various positions. I think by the end of December, everybody will be focused on the Netball World Cup,” says Molokwane.

The launch of the official ball, Kganya and mascot, Letsatsi are some of the things that Molokwane says are a sign that the World Cup fever has hit.

“Nothing can ever be enough, I mean we have started with the mascot of the World Cup and the ball has been launched, for me, it’s a start to say people are now aware that there’s the World Cup coming. We must talk about it every day and let people know. We need to make noise about it as we made noise about Bafana Bafana in 2010. We need to make noise about this World Cup coming to the country. We need to be visible, we actually are going to be doing mobilisation. We are going to go all over the country, in the nine provinces to make sure that we reach those that haven’t been reached. I am happy that we are in a good partnership with the SABC and SuperSport. I think together with the department of Sports we can make sure that people know the World Cup is here,” she says.

Things like venues are also one of the most important components of hosting a successful tournaments and with the ICC having hosted a number of events before, the host city doesn’t have to worry about the venue. Next on the list is the number of tickets that are sold for the event, however with the continental qualifiers not done yet, the pace of which tickets sales are being sold can only be evaluated.

So far, Asia, Americas and Europe are yet to decide the countries that will play in the tournament with the last qualifiers set for 16-21 October in Jamaica. Of the 16 teams that will compete next year, only 10 have been confirmed. Australia, England, Jamaica, New Zealand, Uganda, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Tonga, Fiji and the host country have been confirmed.

“The first batch goes out in November. Remember we cannot sell tickets before the qualifiers are finished. We can only start selling tickets after we know who has qualified. We sell tickets according to the countries that will be playing,” she says.

Molokwane adds that the commitment shown by the City of Cape Town is an indication that the country will host a great tournament. Also the unveiling of several murals in Cape Town, one which honours Spar Proteas goalkeeper, Phumza Maweni. The city in association with the Cape Town Netball Federation will also roll out an afterschool program focused on developing player skills, rules of game and mentorships for coaches.

“They are very much ready, I have seen them. They are committed and they have been committed from day one. They have never changed their commitment. None of our stakeholders have changed on their commitment on hosting this World Cup. They are ones to go an extra mile, there have been two murals opened by the City of Cape Town. One of them is that of Phumza Maweni, I’m happy to say is one of their own. That means a lot to us as the federation,” she adds.