Madibaz coach Lana Krige is chasing constant improvement from her young team ahead of the closing stages of the Varsity Netball tournament in Stellenbosch.
With two wins from five matches, the Nelson Mandela University side has collected nine points and will be looking to move up the log in the final two games of round-robin competition after Thursday’s rest day.
They opened with a notable 54-41 win over UWC on Saturday and defeated TUT 45-24 on Tuesday.
After the Covid-19 pandemic saw last year’s tournament cancelled, Krige has a youthful squad at her disposal and says it is a matter of ‘keeping our heads level under the pressure of competition’.
‘The lessons learned so far are that if we do what we need to do as much as we can, our games will always be a success. But when we play to get rid of the ball or become impatient or anxious, that is when the basics fall away.
‘So it is really just a matter of keeping our composure, and every game we play we are striving to make sure there are more minutes in which we are keeping our heads level and playing the way we want to play.’
While Krige is pleased with the results, they looked at the statistics after each game and identified areas where they could do better.
One of the best performances, she feels, came in their opening game against UWC.
‘That was a great win, because I was a bit worried about the challenge we faced. UWC’s systems are working well and they have recruited some very good players, so that was an excellent start for us.’
The second victory against the Tshwane outfit did not reach the same standard, but Krige was still pleased with the final outcome.
‘Perhaps it wasn’t their best performance, especially in the last three quarters, but the way the girls handled the physicality on court shows that mentally they are adapting to the tough challenges of Varsity Netball.’
Krige believes that effort was an improvement after some disappointing play against a tough Tuks outfit.
‘We had two great quarters, but then there were also times when we just didn’t believe in ourselves. I know it is a young team, with some players not having even competed at first-team schools’ level, and they have been working really hard. But against Tuks, I think they were just a bit overwhelmed by the aura of the competition and therefore didn’t believe in our systems and did not play as well as they can.
‘I understand, however, that we are in a learning curve, not only for this tournament, but also for competitions lying ahead of us.’
The Madibaz will complete their league programme with matches against UJ on Friday and NWU on Saturday.
2021 Varsity Netball log, fixtures and results
– Article courtesy Full Stop Communications
Photos: Kevin Sawyer/Varsity Sports
