Maties beat NWU 71-60 in their top-of-the-log Varsity Netball clash against NWU at the Coetzenburg Indoor Centre, while there were also Round 3 wins for UJ, Tuks and Kovsies.
For the first three quarters of the match between the tournament hosts and NWU, it looked like it could go either way, despite Maties leading at the end of each (15-14, 30-27 and 45-44).
NWU went into the match as slight favourites, having won five of their Varsity Netball encounters against Maties since 2013, including the 2015 final. However, Maties did play in the 2019 final against Tuks and undoubtedly backed themselves to cause a minor upset on day three of the 2021 tournament.
Both NWU and Maties saved their Power Play for the last six minutes of the match. The Potchefstroom-based team took theirs first when leading by a single goal (55-54), clearly hoping to increase their advantage with the final whistle looming. But it was Maties who completely dominated both two-minute periods, scoring six goals for 12 points, while NWU had to settle for a single goal and two points.
The victory wasn’t perfect, but the team from Stellenbosch put in a solid performance both on attack and defence. They stayed focused for the full 60 minutes and kept hassling their opponents.
Santiche Kabuya had a stellar match on defence, never taking her eyes off the NWU shooters. At the other end of the court, Nicholé Taljaard was on point for Maties with a goal shooting accuracy of 89% and was deservedly named as the FNB Player of the Match.
While Maties remained patient and limited mistakes by making sure their offloads were solid and driving the ball with speed, NWU coach Elsunet du Plessis was left with her head in her hands by the numerous missteps (literally) of her team. She also couldn’t have been happy about the high penalty count with several cautions dished out by the umpires. However, shooter Elmere van der Berg remained a standout player for NWU and the other teams should take note of her ability to own the goal circle.
Maties will be sweating on the fitness of wing defence Danielle van Nieuwenhuizen, who went down with what seemed to be a serious ankle injury in the third quarter and grimaced as she left the court.
Maties assistant coach Adele Niemand said she was pleased that the team executed their game plan to attack from the start. Regarding Van Niewenhuizen’s injury, Niemand said they will take things as they come but that the team has depth.
In the first match of the day, UJ notched up their second victory of the tournament by beating UWC 68-30.
After ending the first quarter 13-7 in front, UJ stepped things up and only allowed their opponents five goals in the second quarter to lead 31-12 at half-time. Coach Bongi Msomi made a few positional changes and brought on fresh legs in the third quarter that ended on 50-24.
Defending champions Tuks came out on top in the battle of the Pretoria-based teams when they thrashed TUT 69-22.
It was a tough day at the office for TUT who, after trailing 19-7 after the first quarter, only managed a single goal in the second quarter to go into half-time at 37-8. TUT had a few good moments in the third quarter, but Tuks didn’t give an inch and closed the period of play on 52-12.
Kovsies proved too strong for the Madibaz in the last match of the day, claiming a 76-43 victory.
The Free State team had a strong start, leading 18-11 after the first quarter and 37-20 at half-time. The Madibaz scored 14 points to Kovsies’ 15 in the third quarter (52-34), but the defensive effort of the victors in their opponents’ goal circle secured the victory.
Round 3 results:
UJ 68 UWC 30
FNB Player of the Match: Monica Gomases (UJ)
Maties 71 NWU 60
FNB Player of the Match: Nicholé Taljaard (Maties)
Tuks 69 TUT 22
FNB Player of the Match: Jamie van Wyk (Tuks)
Kovsies 76 Madibaz 43
FNB Player of the Match: Xandri Fourie (Kovsies)
Round 4 fixtures (Tuesday, 24 August):
NWU vs UJ (13:00)
Maties vs UWC (15:00)
Kovsies vs Tuks (17:00)
Madibaz vs TUT (19:00)
– All matches will be broadcast live on SuperSport Variety 4 (DStv channel 209)
By Liryn de Jager
Photo: Kevin Sawyer/Varsity Sports
