Bay netball team ace it

Defending champions Nelson Mandela Bay Metro netball team began their Steve Vukile Tshwete Games campaign on a high when they beat Chris Hani District Municipality 219 at Selborne Park in East London.

NMB coach Mudi Mugenga said she had to motivate a team who were suffering from fatigue, but the way they played was impressive considering they had travelled on the day of the games.

“The girls were tired since they only finished writing exams yesterday, and also from waking up early to travel to East London.

“And we had to get here and register the entire team and play without having any rest, but I’m satisfied with the way they played their first game,” said Mugenga.

The young coach, who has played in the Spar national netball championships, said the positive result would boost their campaign and hopefully give them the momentum needed to defend their title.

“This year we have a new team which we are bringing up, and most of our girls have not competed on a big stage like this one.

“So I think this is good exposure for them, so we also came here to develop our girls so they can gain the experience they need to compete at the tournaments like the Spar national netball championships that I have played.

“But we also want to defend the title we won last year. If there’s a better team than us we’ll gladly hand over the cup to them, but they must prove that they are better than us on the field of play.”

She said the playing conditions were not exactly conducive for a netball game, but she was relieved her players were able to overcome such obstacles.

“The wind was blowing too strong so it was a bit difficult for them to play because the ball kept going and there were no nets and

Most of our girls have not competed on a big stage like this one

that also made things move uphill for them.

“But I’m proud of the girls, because they were able to adjust to everything and did their best – considering the fact that we only assembled the team yesterday.

“Some players are coming from township schools, so we had to instill the way we play in them.

“This year, Nelson Mandela Metro went into the townships and hosted tournaments to prepare the girls and their skills developed from there on.

“So we made sure that we got our combinations together and I think we’ll be in a good position when this tournament ends,” the coach said.