The icy cold weather didn’t dampen the spirits of the hundreds of netball players who graced the court in the DSTV Schools Netball Challenge (DSNC) national finals on Friday.
Bragging rights and a trip of a lifetime to the Netball World Cup are up for grabs in the third annual competition.
The two winning schools will be flown to Cape Town and will watch South Africa play against Sri Lanka and England battle Malawi. The players will also get to meet their national heroines, the Spar Proteas after the match.
The DSNC, launched in 2021, is a partnership between MultiChoice and the South African Schools Netball. It offers a platform for players from all schools around the country to experience the highest level of competition in schools netball.
It’s also a chance for both urban and rural area schools an equal opportunity to showcase their skills. This partnership aims to unearth, nurture, and support the next generation of Spar Proteas.
The competition is divided into two streams, Botho (urban) and Ubuntu (rural).
It’s a chilly ?????? start to the 2023 DStv Schools Netball Challenge…
— DStv Netball (@DStvNetball) July 21, 2023
Some high octane ?? netball ???????? will definitely warm up the girls as they start their quest for the coveted title of the best netball school in the country and the trip to the World Cup.… pic.twitter.com/omLqRgh873
Western Cape’s Sinobom Mpekula is thrilled that her team, Mamzomthombo Secondary, is part of the competition after they almost missed out in the provincial round of the tournament.
The centre court player says her school is determined to make a name for themselves in the competition
“We are really happy because we didn’t think we would come here. We had lost hope but we were happy to know that our team also qualified for the national finals. I really want us to get the first prize, we come from far, in Cape Town and it wouldn’t look good for our school if we came all the way and go back empty handed,” says Mpekula.
Manzomthombo ended the first day of the tournament with two points after winning one of their two games in Pool B on the opening day of the competition.
Mpekula says although their matches were not as tough, they need to improve on their communication on the court.
“The games we have played so far were not that difficult but it seems our communication has not been great. We don’t communicate and the attitude we have when the coaches try to tell us to rectify that is not good. We need to improve on our communication and show a united front because it seems we don’t want to help each other fix our mistakes. We need to listen to the coaches,” she says.
ORANJE, PAARL GIRLS AND SECUNDA START WELL
Meanwhile, the defending champions in the Botho stream, C&N Sekondêre Meisieskool Oranje had a stellar start in the group.
They sit at the top of the table with six points after winning all their matches on opening day.
They will face Manzomthombo and Tsosoloso Special School on Saturday to round off their group matches.
Oranje’s intention to successfully defend their title was seen with having experienced and three time Telkom Netball League winning coach, Burta de Kock on their bench. Hoërskool Secunda also collected six points in the same group.
Last year’s silver medallists, Paarl Girls High School, also started the campaign really well.
They lead Pool D with eight points after playing four matches on day one and Free State’s Eunice High School for Girls are dominating Pool A with seven points after winning three of their matches and taking a draw against the Potchefstroom Gimnasium in a tightly contested match in the opening round.
This is the first draw in this round. Gimmies, who won the inaugural Botho DSNC, closed off the day with five points.
It’s been an exciting opening day of the DStv Schools Netball Challenge! ??????
— DStv Netball (@DStvNetball) July 21, 2023
The courts were filled with tons action and it’s only a matter of time until we find the winner of this prestigious tournament ??.#DStvNetballChallenge pic.twitter.com/H6MiWCI4US