New Tactix a trailblazer for Malawi

MwaiKumwenda not only wants to helpMalawi improve as an international netball nation, but shealso wants to inspire other young Africans to follow their dreams. BRENDONEGANreports.

When Mwai Kumwenda suits up for the Tactix in next year’s transTasman netball league she will complete a remarkable journey she never thought was possible.

Kumwenda will create history when she becomes the first player from the southeast African nation of Malawi to feature in the competition.

The 24-year-old’s story is a fascinating one.

Kumwenda only played her first competitive netball game seven years ago, but in that time has developed into one of the most intriguing figures in the game.

As the youngest of eight siblings, she grew up in a small village in the Mzimba district of northern Malawi.

She first became involved with the sport aged 10, but it wasn’t until she moved to Blantyre, the commercial hub of Malawi, to live with her sister that she started to take the game seriously.

Kumwenda, who will spearhead the Malawi national side in their three-game series against the Silver Ferns beginning in Wellington tomorrow, recalls playing netball outside on primitive dirt courts back home. It’s a far cry from what she will experience in next year’s trans-Tasman competition when she plays in front of packed crowds in some of Australasia’s finest arenas.

Her netball career and life changed dramatically in 2009 after representing her country at the under-21 world youth champion- ships in the Cook Islands.

Little did the 1.84-metre Kumwenda know, but while she was sinking goals with aplomb, she was being watched by a Melbourne-based talent spotter.

Maxine Wauchope, the head coach of the Peninsula Waves club in the Victorian netball league, was scouting for an accurate shooter and Kumwenda ticked all the boxes. She finished the tournament with 377 goals at an average of 54 a game and 94 per cent success rate, and the Waves knew they had found their girl.

They got in contact with Kumwenda and the Malawi netball association, who were both supportive of the concept and started to put a plan in place. After a lengthy process that took close to a year to complete, the Waves managed to overcome the red tape and gain visa approval for Kumwenda. The club was granted sponsorship status by the Australian government, which helped clear the way for her move.

Kumwenda touched down in Melbourne in January 2011 and experienced immediate culture shock.

With only a limited grasp of English, she not only had to overcome the language barrier, but a lifestyle that was worlds away from what she was used to in Malawi.

During her three years in Victoria, Kumwenda lived with a mixture of different host families from the Waves club and gradually began to adjust to her new environment and immerse herself into the Australian way of life.

She has coached netball in the schools, developed a liking for slow cooker meals, including her favourite chicken parmesan, while also taking up art classes.

Kumwenda quickly brought respectability back to the Waves in the Victorian state league, lifting them from a ninth-place finish in 2010, before she arrived, to seventh in her debut season. The past two seasons, they contended for the title, placing third and second respectively.

One of the highlight’s of Kumwenda’s time in Melbourne was a surprise visit from her Malawi-based mother, Costa, who watched her play live for the first time. It was an emotional experience for the pair and something Kumwenda will never forget.

It did not take long for Kumwenda’s sparkling play to catch the attention of the Victorian Fury in Australia’s domestic netball league (ANL). She was granted permission to compete this season, despite being an overseas player, and took the competition by storm.

Kumwenda led the Fury to the title with a record-breaking campaign, where she slotted 461 goals at 95 per cent, which earned her most valuable player honours.

Kumwenda’s dazzling play in the ANL catapulted her into transTasman netball league reckoning.

The Christchurch-based Tactix were in desperate need of a goal shoot after English international Jo Harten jumped ship to the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic making Kumwenda priority No 1.

Said Kumwenda: ‘‘I’m very excited to play for the Tactix next year and to meet the other girls. It’s good to play [in the transTasman netball league]. It was my dream.’’