A blazing first half, steady nerves, and a roaring home crowd powered the SPAR Proteas to a commanding 65-50 victory over England on Sunday, sealing a hard-fought 2–1 series triumph in the SPAR Challenge netball series at Ellis Park Arena in the City of Johannesburg.
SPAR Proteas coach Jenny van Dyk reverted to the starting seven from Thursday’s first-Test win over England, with the only change seeing Elmeré van der Berg coming in at goal shooter for Rolene Streutker.
The South Africans came out firing in a fast-paced opening quarter, taking an early lead thanks to some excellent turnovers in the circle from the home side’s defenders, Sanmarie Visser on goal defence and Juanita van Tonder at goalkeeper.
With the SA midcourt also clicking well and the shooters on target, the SPAR Proteas continued to dominate, opening their cushion to seven goals by the end of the quarter, which finished with the score on 16-9.
Van Dyk made no changes at the start of the second quarter which the South Africans continued to dominate. Even when Tarle Mathe, who was having an excellent game at centre, had to leave the court with an injury to be replaced by Refiloe Nketsa, none of the momentum was lost.
And despite what England coach Jess Thirlby threw at them, with multiple substitutions made, the SA side remained composed, focused and fluid in their execution
The close-to-capacity crowd was treated to a thrilling display of netball with slick passes, spectacular intercepts and spot-on shooting, meaning the SPAR Proteas continued to extend their lead even further, reaching the half-time break an impressive 15 goals up on 36-21.
The real test would come in the third quarter – the one that England had dominated in the previous two matches of the series.
Sure enough, the English did well to disrupt some of the South African speed and rhythm, but the home side rallied to minimise the damage and keep the scoreboard ticking over. The SPAR Proteas went into the final break 52-38 up, with the visitors having just edged the quarter score by one goal (16-17).
After receiving treatment, Mathe had returned to centre at the start of the third quarter, but was replaced by Nketsa again at the start of the fourth, with Streutker coming on for Van der Berg at goal shooter. Van Tonder went down hard on her knee early on in the final quarter, bringing Nicola Smith in at goalkeeper.
Later in the period, Kamogelo Maseko was brought on for Player of the Match, Owethu Ngubane, while Kyla Dames replaced captain Khanyisa Chawane at wing attack.
There were plenty of tired bodies on both sides as the clock ticked down and the pace of the game dropped considerably in what turned into another evenly contested quarter. But ultimately the South Africans’ phenomenal first-half effort had won them the match, and the series 2-1.
Captain Chawane gave credit to her team for bouncing back after some “hard conversations” after Saturday’s loss.
“It was amazing. I think I just liked the hunger. You could see each and every person on that court wanted to win,” she said.
“We went for every ball. Even if a ball was thrown in another direction, we changed our bodies. Every loose ball we were on it. And you could tell from that effort that everyone wanted to take this… I loved the energy and from there just building from that to the win.”
For Coaches Van Dyk and Zanele Mdodana, it was mission accomplished in terms of giving their players game time during the series, building different combinations and still coming out with the win.
Speaking after Sunday’s match, Van Dyk said: “Today was a clinical performance and just a team that responded so well to the plan and to what we knew we had to get done out there today. So, very proud of the players and the team.”
England coach Jess Thirlby said her side had been outplayed but there were still plenty of positives to take from the series heading into the Commonwealth Games later in the year.
“Obviously we’re really disappointed. But first, can I just congratulate South Africa on a brilliant performance in front of their home crowd,” she said.
“With such a deficit to chase, we didn’t give up. I’m really proud of our efforts… But ultimately, for too much of the game, we were beaten and in too many of the matchups we fell short. It’s a hard one and it hurts, but I also respect and give credit to the standard of the performance from the Proteas today.”
Results
SPAR Proteas vs England Roses
Q1: 16-9
Q2: 36-21 (20-12)
Q3: 52-38 (16-17)
Q4: 65-50 (13-12)
Player of the Tournament: Sanmarie Visser (SPAR Proteas)
Best Shooter: Owethu Ngubane (SPAR Proteas)
Best Mid-court Player: Tarle Mathe (SPAR Proteas)
Best Defender: Fran Williams (England Roses)
South Africa men vs Australia men
Q1: 13-12
Q2: 26-24 (13-12)
Q3: 33-37 (20-25)
Q4: 41-52 (8-15)
Player of the Tournament: Liam Forcadilla (Australia)
Best Shooter: Liam Killey (Australia)
Best Mid-court Player: Kwandile Sithole (South Africa)
Best Defender: Vukile Zulu (South Africa)
