Flames and Jaguars through to netball semis

The North West Flames and the Gauteng Jaguars both booked their places in the semifinals of the Brutal Fruit Netball Premier League recently.

As the competition now shifts to the Olive Convention Centre in Durban for the playoffs, both teams will have a break until the semifinals on 28 May.

The Flames finished top of the log on 17 points following an unbeaten season to this point, while the Jaguars finished second on 15 points. Their opponents will be decided in this weekend’s quarterfinals in Durban.

The Flames will face the winner of the quarterfinal between the Southern Stings and the Kingdom Stars; while the Jaguars will take on the winner of the quarterfinal between the Free State Crinums and the Gauteng Golden Fireballs.

The coaching duo of Dorette Badenhorst of the Flames and Jenny van Dyk of the Jaguars know better than most that now is when the competition really begins.

“It felt great to go through without losing a game, but now the real competition starts. If you lose now you’re out,” said Badenhorst, who’s team heads into the playoffs in a confident mood after beating the Fireballs 65–48.

“I never thought we’d finish this stage of the competition at the top of the log. All the teams were really strong and there wasn’t a single easy game. Even though there were high scores, it wasn’t as easy as it might have looked. I didn’t think we’d be unbeaten, but it’s great because it gives the players confidence going into the semis.”

Van Dyk’s Jaguars rounded off the first part of their campaign with a 56–34 win over the Stars and then a 78–32 victory over the Limpopo Baobabs. Van Dyk has welcomed the break for her players as they prepare for the semifinals.

“I’m very proud of the team. We did enough the past few weeks to take that second spot and I’m proud of the character shown by my players. Now they’ll have a rest in the next two weeks to get those legs fresh for the semis.”

The Crinums had a very good weekend, beating the Southern Stings 32–31 and then routing the Mpumalanga Sunbirds 71–30 to head into the quarterfinals with a new spark to their campaign.

It was a tough defeat for Stings coach Annelie Lucas who’s team set the early pace in the competition. “Our loss means we don’t go straight through to the semifinals, but on the positive side, we have some more game time to prepare.”

Round 6 Results at the Ellis Park Indoor Arena, Johannesburg:

13 May

Kingdom Stars 52 Diamonds 20

Southern Stings 55 Sunbirds 28

14 May

Jaguars 56 Kingdom Stars 34

Aloes 55 Baobabs 36

Crinums 32 Southern Stings 31

Flames 65 Fireballs 48

15 May

Crinums 71 Sunbirds 30

Jaguars 78 Baobabs 32.