NMMU goal keeper and goal defender, Zanele Vimbela, is looking forward to the start of this year’s Varsity Netball tournament on September 15.
Vimbela reckons they will do much better than they did last season when they lost in the semi finals to Kovsies.
Vimbela, who made the Proteas’ team that finished sixth at the recent Commonwealth Games in Glasgow Scotland, said she hopes her experience with the first team will contribute to the Madibaz campaign.
“We are looking to improve our rankings from last year where we ended third which was very good for us seeing that we were up against tough teams. We are planning to improve our ranking by two spots. But our ultimate goal is to go two steps better by winning the tournament,” she said.
The Madibaz have made some changes to their technical teams as they have promoted their experienced player to the bench. Spar Proteas Dumi Chauke will coach the senior team and she will no longer serve as a player.
Chauke’s stellar performance at last year’s competition earned her a call up to the national team.
Now, she will use the teachings she got from the national team to help the Madibaz in the second edition of the competition.
“She’s a great coach so far. She helped us improve our ranking at the USSA from sixth to fifth where we had to put up with tough competition which makes us qualify for next year’s Varsity competition,” she added.
Vimbela will be enjoying her last Varsity Netball tournament as she turned 25. Only players that are 25 or younger are allowed to take part in the competition.
“I think I can bring in methods and training techniques from what I learned from the national coach Elize Kotze. I can try and incorporate that into our team considering I playing in defence but there are other areas I can contribute to that can be helpful. Tactically we are good but there is always a room for improvement,” she said.
By Busisiwe Mokwena – Daily Sun and Sunday Sun sports reporter
