The roaring home crowd proved crucial for Cape Town A in the final of the Spar Netball Championship.
The home side walked away victorious after narrowly beating Tshwane A 55-56 in the weeklong tournament held at the Stellenberg High School in Belville.
The Western Cape side took an early lead in the first quarter of the match but Tshwane fought back in the second quarter and the match was neck and neck until the final whistle.
Cape Town has become the first Western Cape team in 10 years to have won the title. Cape Town took the silver medal at last year’s competition, falling short by only a goal to Johannesburg A.
Coach Dr. Freda Kemp says winning the title will go a long way in developing the sport in the province and also attracting corporates to sponsor the sport.
'WE ARE VERY PROUD'
“We have been working hard for the last three years to get finances for netball and I said to my team that we need to start winning to be able to attract sponsorship. Apart from developing netball and winning is great to take netball forward in Cape Town. We really worked hard, making sure that the players got everything they need to perform at the highest level. We are very proud,” says Kemp.
Having a strong shooting circle that consisted of experienced Nichole Breedt, Sian Moore and Sigrid Burger was crucial for the home side. The young Simone Dry also played a good part for the team, including the defensive prowess of Entle Futshane and Kelly Du Toit.
Tshwane went through the competition without conceding a single loss. They even defeated Kemp’s team in the group stages. The final was their only loss of the competition and coach Rozanne Matthyse says although it may be heartbreaking having not won the title, she is happy with the progress that her side has made. The side from the capital city finished in sixth position at last year’s competition and have now finished on the podium for the first time since 2020.
“It’s not easy losing with one goal because you tend to look back and think where (you went wrong). It’s such a small margin of error. But I am super proud of the girls. We showed up this week and I don’t think we made one step forward but we have made 10 steps forward, coming from where we were last year. We ran out of time in the end but performance wise, I am proud. I think they really worked hard and they fought for it,” says Matthyse.
MANGAUNG A TAKES BRONZE
The Karla Pretorius-led Mangaung A took the bronze medal after defeating last year’s winners Joburg A in the third playoff match.
Meanwhile Joburg Under-21 A completed a threepeat, winning the age division title for a third consecutive time. The Bongiwe Msomi-led team defeated provincial rivals, Tshwane 52-38. The champions led the contest from the first quarter and were dominant throughout the match.
Coach Msomi says she is proud of what her players produced on court. Her side went through the tournament without registering a single loss. She says it was important to use all the players they have, in order to achieve the team’s goal.
“They put in so much work behind the scenes to prepare for such an event. We have made them come up with their own ideas of what they want to achieve and for us it was to make them to be accountable. I cannot question how they’ve been looking, not just on the court but off as well. When you sit on the bench it doesn’t feel like you’re cruising because even if you are going to win at the end sometimes it is quite tight so you do panic a bit.
We came with a group of 12 players that we wanted to make feel like they are good enough and with that we made sure that everyone takes to court. Sometimes you're just lucky in the year that you are the one that has the upper hand, and I think we've been lucky this year again,” says Msomi.
Tshwane coach Faith Mobeng says that her players threw in the towel early by putting themselves under unnecessary pleasure.
“It was difficult and I think we made it difficult for ourselves as well. There was no need for us to put ourselves under so much pressure. It’s one thing for a team to outplay you because they are outplaying you but it’s a different thing when they are outplaying you because you are throwing it away and you’re not too clinical. Playing a final needs you to be extremely clinical. They gave up too soon and when they wanted to come back, it was a bit too late,” says Mobeng.
Mangaung Under-21 won the bronze over North West’s Royal Bafokeng.
Individual awards
Senior A
Best Shooter: Ine-Marie Venter (Tshwane)
Best Mid-court player: Sanelisiwe Ntobela (Joburg)
Best Defender: Asemahle Dyidi (Cape Town)
Player of the tournament: Luca Keun (Tshwane)
Under-21 A
Best Shooter: Shilo Barardelli (Joburg)
Best Mid-court player: Naledi Mokoa (Tshwane)
Best Defender: Kimberly Amiras (Tshwane)
Player of the tournament: Boitumelo Mokoena (Joburg)