Vital round robin game for Madibaz

The SPAR Madibaz netball team are geared up to make one final push for a spot in the Varsity Netball semifinals when they host Stellenbosch University in their last roundrobin match in Port Elizabeth on Monday.

To be held at the Madibaz Indoor Sports Centre at 6pm, the pressure on the home side will be intense as none of the leading teams are assured of qualifying for the playoffs.

Free State University have the inside track with 26 points, followed by Stellenbosch on 24 and Madibaz on 22.

North West University and UP-Tuks, both on 21 points, are also in the running.

Lana Krige, coach of the Nelson Mandela University outfit, said it was an unusual situation, particularly with the Madibaz having won five of their six matches.

“I’m sure it’s the first time we have lost only one match and are still not sure of a place in the semis,” she said.

“We haven’t collected quite enough bonus points and that is because a lot of the other teams have a tall shooter, so it is easier when they get the ball into the circle to score goals.

“There have been some high-scoring games which resulted in those sides collecting bonus points.”

As a comparison, Free State and Stellenbosch have picked up six and eight bonus points respectively, while Madibaz have collected only two.

A Madibaz win will put them into the semifinals, while defeat means that their hopes will depend on the other results.

In the other key matches, Free State take on North West in Bloemfontein and UP-Tuks face University of Western Cape in Pretoria.