Bongi had a hard road to the top
Proteas captain very grateful to the national team’s coaching staff.
As a teenager, Bongi Msomi had no ambitions to become a netball player, but after making a chance appearance on court in her youth, the livewire centre-court star has become a pillar of hope for young girls around the country.
One of eight children, Msomi was watching from the side of the field at the age of 16 when she was asked by friends in Hammarsdale to fill in, as they were a player short for a netball game.
She obliged, and though she could not have guessed it that day, the sport would ultimately change her life.
“On the Monday morning, the coach at school (S’thembiso Mncwabe) called me in and said he wanted me to go to training. The following weekend I played my first real game,” Msomi said this week.
“So I started as a fill-in player, and my first coach has been my mentor ever since. He’s also involved now in the netball clinics I host.”
Having earned a sports management diploma at the Durban University of Technology, Msomi made her Proteas debut in 2011 and took over the captaincy of the national team from Maryka Holtzhausen two years ago.
Though she led the SA team to an historic 54-51 victory over England in Invercargill last year, with the Proteas putting up consistent fights against the top three teams in the world throughout the 2016/17 Quad Series, the national side struggled to challenge their opponents at the recent Australasian leg of the four-nation campaign, which also featured powerhouse teams Australia and New Zealand.
Msomi, however, has been a pioneer among professional South African players in recent years, playing a key role in paving the way for others to make a living from the sport, with Netball SA trying to transform the domestic game from its long-time amateur structures to a professional set-up.
The captain of the KZN Kingdom Stars in the local Brutal Fruit Netball Premier League, Msomi has also turned out for the likes of Surrey Storm and the Wasps in the UK Superleague, as well as the Adelaide Thunderbirds in Australia’s Super Netball series.
After taking up the sport at a later age than most of her team-mates, the 30-yearold player said this week she felt she was still gaining experience at the highest level.
“Every chance I get to play for the national side is a learning curve.
“Most people don’t start playing as late as I did, so when I started I was very conscious of what I could do and what I couldn’t do, and I was very aware when I was struggling.
“I’m grateful to my coach for helping me be the best player I could be at that stage.
“I had to work hard, but if I look back now, it feels really amazing to have achieved everything I have, and I’m still looking forward to achieving a few more things.”
While she served as evidence that players from townships and rural areas could make it to the top in the country’s highest participation sport among women, Msomi felt the majority of young players continued to face struggles, particularly with regards to a lack of specialised coaching.
Being aware of one’s strengths and weaknesses was important in over- coming social hurdles, she believed, and talent and hard work was a lucrative combination.
“It’s about putting the dedication and commitment into what you want to achieve, rather than waiting for big things to happen,” Msomi said.
“It’s hard and it doesn’t just come. You have to make a lot of sacrifices.”
Supported by the Elite Athlete Development Programme in KwaZulu-Natal, Msomi was recently recognised as Sportswoman-of-the-Year at the KZN Sport Awards, and she was grateful for the journey and successes she had experienced throughout her career.
“It’s been quite an amazing journey, and every time I’m announced as the captain for a match or series, I really feel humbled and honoured to lead the country,” she said.
“I’ve achieved so much that I never thought I would through the sport, and there’s nothing more I can ask than what it has already given me. It’s been really amazing and the people around me have been so supportive.
“It’s also been an honour to be the national captain under such great leadership, with Proteas coach Norma Plummer and her assistant Nicole (Cusack), and the girls I lead have been very supportive. I believe any one of them could be the captain of the team.”