Sunday Tribune

Coach thrilled with Johannesburg win

MATSHELANE MAMABOLO matshelane.mamabolo@inl.co.za

ELSJE Jordaan’s delight at finally leading Johannesburg to the national netball title knew no bounds here yesterday .

The renowned coach saw to her team’s 24-23 victory over neighbours Tshwane at the Spar Women’s National Netball Championships at the North West University’s Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds.

“It means everything for me. This trophy has been eluding me for years. This tournament is very close to my heart because I used to play in it as a player and now to win it as a coach is everything. I’ve been to three finals and this is the first time I am winning it.”

And she could not have asked for a better way to end her duck – victory in the Gauteng derby over opposition that was big favourites.

“We were in control from the first quarter, but we nearly lost it at the end,” she said. “But I was proud that the girls managed to hold on.”

What pleased her most about the victory was the fact that they were thin as a squad.

“We came here with just 10 players and we had no video assistant or medical team. So to achieve this is really great.”

In a thrilling encounter, Jordaan’s team were in charge from the onset, courtesy of the shooting prowess of Proteas player Nomfundo Mngomezulu. The goal shooter from Richards Bay was in her element in the first quarter, while her opposite number Inke Visser’s shooting was seriously misaligned as she fluffed her attempts.

Johannesburg led 6-4 at the end of the first quarter, but some tactical changes by Tshwane’s Jenny van Dyk seemed to work as they raced to a 3-0 lead in the second quarter. But it just was Johannesburg’s day as they turned things around in the last stage of the quarter to go into half time enjoying a 14-10 lead.

But sport is fickle at the top and when Jordaan replaced Mngomezulu sometime in the third quarter, she seemed to have given the game to her opponents.

Tshwane looked like the team that had gone through the whole week unbeaten as they played with precision and scored freely to win the third quarter 6-3. They were still trailing by a goal though (16-17) and needed a massive last quarter to steal it.

With the crowd on their feet and singing, the teams engaged in a seesaw battle that saw the lead exchanging hands briefly until Johannesburg edged ahead.

And when they held on to possession and exchanged passes to play out for time, it was clear that Tshwane’s dream of emulating their under 21s, who won their section earlier on via a 38-27 victory over host Dr Kenneth Kaunda, were not going to materialise.

Johannesburg captain Boitumelo Mahloko cried tears of joy as she gave her teammates congratulatory hugs.

“This is what we came her for,” she said “We really wanted this. They beat us during the week, and we knew it would be tough. But we came into this match with such great energy I knew we would win. And to finally become champions means so much for us.”

Her opposite number, Tshwane captain Lungile Mthembu, was magnanimous in defeat: “It’s very rare for a team to win the championships unbeaten, but we gave it a shot. We knew they had nothing to lose and that it would be tough opposition, but we fought until the end.”

SPORT

en-za

2022-08-14T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-08-14T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://sundaytribune.pressreader.com/article/281801402743855

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