Wits defender and their leading goal scorer Demi Du Toit has her sights set on the national side but obtaining her degree is paramount.
The honours student has been able to juggle her academics and her studies for the past couple of years and this year she is trying to do the same but studying towards an honours degree is something that will take up more time than she is used to.
“My academics are incredibly important to me and getting my degree at the end of this year is something that I am really working hard for.
“I have been able to play in Varisty hockey and been involved with the Wits side but I am trying to condition myself that I can push for national selection next year,” Du Toit told varsitysportssa.
She is aware of the fact that hockey is not a high-profile sport in South Africa and she understands that having a qualification behind her is vital.
“Hockey, especially in South Africa, won’t be able to support me and I am going to have to have something to fall back on,” she mentioned.
Du Toit is studying her honours in speech pathology and Audiology.
The spirit of the Wits girls is something that they pride themselves on and it is also something that Du Toit thinks will help them improve.
“We have an incredible fighting spirit – we have never given up in any of our games.
“As a team we have done well because we have been improving with every game that we have played.
“In the past our focus has been based too much on the opposition but during the Varsity Hockey tournament we have changed that focus and and concentrated on our strengths,” she added.
For the Witsies is has been about playing as a unit.
“We have had to pull together as a team.
“A lot of the girls in the side have not played hockey at this level and so it is important for the more experienced players to help them,” Du Toit explained.
Du Toit’s next assignment is taking on the juggernaut that is Pukke, and then it does not get any easier when the Witsies take on Tuks in their last game of the Bloemfontein leg.
