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Kovsies defeat Maties in high-tempo clash
As Kovsies took on the Maties in a nail-biting encounter at the Callie Human, Bloemfontein, the home side booked their place in the Varsity Netball final, winning their semi-final 56-45.
The first quarter was untidy in terms of incomplete passes and unforced errors from the home side. The Maties side capitalised on the mistakes, taking the lead at the end of the first quarter, 12 goals to 9.
Kovsies brought on Meagan Roux to start the second quarter, replacing Lefébre Rademan at goal attack. The goals stayed with the centre passes for the beginning of the second quarter, but with the Kovsies defenders, Khomotso Mamburu and Ané Retief doing excellent working with the rebounds, the home side evened the scores with just under 10 minutes left in the quarter, and shortly after took a lead of their own ending the first half 25-23.
The second half saw Roux moving to wing attack, and Rademan coming back on at goal attack. The break clearly did the Kovsies well as their game seemed to flow much better. With nine minutes left in the third quarter, Kovsies called their power play. Both teams scored two double pointers taking the score to 35-31. The power play, unfortunately, saw Roux injured and was replaced by Rieze Straeuli. Despite the Maties surge, Kovsies managed to end the quarter with a 2 goal lead with the score standing at 40-38.
At the start of the final 15 minutes, the Maties defenders seemed to lose Alicia Puren under the goalpost. With 6 minutes left, Maties called their power play and both teams scored only one double pointer each. This power play also saw Kovsies reach the 50 goal mark.
After the power play, the Kovsies side took off and extended their lead to 11 goals to win the semi-final 56 goals to 45. They will go on to play the UP Tuks in the final on October 8, in Bloemfontein.
Defending champions outclass spirited Madibaz as they secure yet another final
It was determination versus experience as the defending champions UP-Tuks pulled ahead to knock out a determined Madibaz side 55-46 in Monday’s first Varsity Netball semi-final.
The University of Pretoria took on the Nelson Mandela University in what many netball lovers would consider the clash of the day as there was precious little difference between the sides in the round stages, finishing on the same number of points. UP-Tuks would feel as though they had the upper hand though, as they secured a home semi-final, and had in their earlier encounter beaten the spirited Madibaz.
It was a nervy start for the home team as the visitors took early initiative, getting on the board first. They had the expertise of the experienced Ine-Mari Venter who kept her composure against a very determined captain Jeanie Steyn. A number of errors and penalties saw the first quarter end with a very tight 12-9 lead for UP-Tuks.
The second quarter began well for the defending champions as they got up to a five-point lead before a series of clever defensive plays and composure by Vorster and Blom saw the Madibaz reduce the deficit. They came within a point of the champions with the halftime score of 22 points to Tuks’s 23, proving that it was as close an encounter as the previews suggested. Both teams added fresh legs as the crowd was treated to an exhilarating play by two great teams.
Tuks were the first to call their power play and seemed to have made good use of it scoring 4 points before the Nelson Mandela University answered with 4 points of their own. It was determination versus experience in the final quarter. The experience and grace of Ine-Mari shone through at goal attack with enterprising play between her and season debutant Venetia Grobler with a tall-tall combination for UP-Tuks. But the side from the Eastern Cape never gave up making it a nerve-wracking conclusion of the match for the home crowd.
A decisive power play left hearts in throats as it became goal-to-goal action once again with a crucial intercept by Steyn, which saw the Madibaz narrowly outscore the Tuks team 6 to 8 in the power play. However, the sun all but set on the Madibaz 2018 campaign as they made a few crucial mistakes with Mensah making multiple interceptions. This saw Tuks pull ahead and become the first team to book their spot in the final. Final score 55 Tuks 46 Madibaz.
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