By BAKANG MOKOTO
10 February 2025- Despite a gallant effort, the SPAR Proteas succumbed to a 61-55 loss in a thrilling Nations Cup final played at the Copper Box Arena in London, England. The match that was anticipated to be a nail-biting final, was attended by a sell-out crowd of 7000 spectators.
This comes after both teams engaged in a closely contested clash a week ago, which South Africa beat the hosts 61-59. On Sunday, however, the SPAR Proteas faced their toughest challenge in the tournament playing the hosts at home for the title.
The Proteas started the game impressively with Sanmarie Visser (GK) making life difficult for the English goal shooters in the circle. South Africa held England throughout the first quarter, leading 15-12 going into the break.
However, the England Roses quickly regrouped and demonstrated remarkable skill in the second quarter closing the gap. After two missed attempts at goal from South Africa, the host nation levelled the score and then took the lead.
The Spar Proteas coach, Coach Jenny van Dyk said with England leading 26-23 and four minutes remaining in the second quarter, South Africa needed to regain control. Van Dyk said, however, they struggled with several turnovers, allowing England to extend their lead to 30-28 by halftime.
“In the first half, the team recorded 16 turnovers. For comparison, South Africa had only 15 turnovers throughout the entire game against Malawi on Saturday. England continued to build momentum in the third quarter, extending their lead to six points.
“South Africa encountered a difficult six minutes in the third quarter when centre Refiloe Nketsa was sent off court for dangerous play. This situation gave England a significant advantage. However, instead of faltering with a player down, South Africa remained resilient and aggressively pushed forward scoring two goals, but England managed to maintain a four-point lead,” she said.
Van Dyk further said as the quarter progressed, England continued to keep their score ticking upward. She added that, despite being a player down, the SPAR Proteas fought valiantly, narrowing the gap from six points to three by the end of the quarter, which concluded 46-43 in favour of England.
“During the third quarter break, I urged our team to focus on ball control and the basics as the fourth quarter commenced. South Africa battled back to level the score at 46-46. England responded by pulling ahead by six points and held on to secure the victory 61-55.
“We acknowledge that, Nketsa’s sending off posed a significant challenge for the team. I’m not even quite sure what happened there, but we’ll have to go back and look at what could have gone wrong. But no excuses today. I felt that we spent six minutes playing with only six players on the court in a final, you know we have to ask the questions what happened there,” said van Dyk.
She praised her team forstanding their ground even when outnumbered in the third quarter. Van Dyk said at the end of the day, coming back into the game with only six players on board, she just thought that was the true South African character and the nation’s spirit.
“It’s about finishing strong and we said it from the start that it was important for us to stay in the game and I felt that we did. With five of the world’s top 15 netball-ranked nations from Africa, I questioned whether our unique African style of play was considered when competing against teams from other continents.
“If this style is not acknowledged and officiating does not align with the African approach, they are forced to adapt to succeed at international competitions. So at the end of the day, there’s no excuses for us. We’ve had a great campaign, but we’ve been away from home for a long time and that being said,” she said.
Van Dyk said she is very proud of her players. She said she felt they showed so much character. She also congratulated England as they fought well.
Meanwhile, the SPAR Proteas will be returning back in South Africa on Tuesday (OR Tambo International Airport), 11 February 2025, at 09:30am.
The Guardian 