The Western Cape Tornados have shown that they are not a team that can be underestimated even with their first appearance in the Telkom Netball League. The Tornados moved to the top of the log yesterday and were able to retain their number one spot after beating the Diamonds 37-36 in the first match this morning.
Tornados coach- Danlee Matthews believes her girls should not be clouded by their success: ‘’I told them that it starts with discipline, on and off the court and I’m very pedantic with regards to discipline off court. From here onwards, its recovery, rest, nutrition, and that is where it starts for me because that transfers obviously to matches. The fitter you are and more conditioned, you will produce at the end of the day. They will now savour this win until tonight when we have our team talk then it is over and done.’’
Meanwhile, the Gauteng Jaguars have officially cemented their spot in the semi-finals after a comfortable 47-32 win over the Golden Fireballs in today’s Gauteng Derby. Jenny Van Dyk’s team will now have to wait and see who they will face in the last four of the competition. Goalkeeper- Zanele Vimbela sustained a knee injury in the third quarter which is a major blow for the team who have immense pressure of making sure they record victories in their last two round robin games to progress to the semi’s.
Fireballs coach- Dumisani Chauke says she is more focused on the bigger picture: ‘’What we have is the heart for this sport and I think we have shown that. We came here knowing that the history of the Fireballs is that they usually trail from behind and just come back with guns blazing, we want to rebrand and change that perception which I think we have done pretty well.’’
In the other Division B game, the Kingdom Queens refused to move level on points with the Limpopo Baobabs after beating them by a narrow 39-37. Yesterday, they prevented the Eastern Cape Aloes from moving to the summit of the log with a one goal victory. The Queens are still very much in the running of finishing number one on the log and now have 8 points with two games to go. ‘’This is a great tournament; a lot of my players are young, so the stretch really gets to them, but I think they have picked up as a team. We are now consistent and have this wonderful fighting spirit right until the end,’’ Queens coach- Magda Du Plessis stated after the game.
