Karla Pretorius in action for the Proteas netball team. Picture: Emily Barker/Getty Images
Though they admit more progress needs to be made, some of South Africa’s most experienced international players have seen an improved standard in the Telkom Netball League (TNL) after returning home to play in the domestic campaign.
The 2024 edition of the annual TNL opened at Ellis Park last week, with the Free State Crinums taking top spot on the log after the first week of action.
A few Proteas stars returned this season from plying their trades overseas, in order to participate in the domestic league, including global star Karla Pretorius.
After spending seven years playing in Australia’s professional league, Pretorius signed with early TNL front-runners the Crinums for the 2024 season.
“I am thrilled to be back home, and seeing how the game has evolved is utterly amazing,” Pretorius said.
Zanele Vimbela is also back from a three-year stint in the UK, having joined defending champions the Gauteng Jaguars who are lying third in the standings after the first week of action.
“It is good to be back and I must admit that it is a different competitive environment,” Vimbela said.
“Abroad we played weekly and here back at home we are playing daily, games are faster, and one needs to adjust to it as quickly as possible. I think I have settled in though.”
However, while they both acknowledged that the standard of the domestic league had been raised since they last played here, Pretorius and Vimbela felt there was still progress to be made if the semi-professional TNL was to be compared to professional leagues in Australia, New Zealand and England.
“There is definitely a step up in competitiveness from when I last played in the TNL, but there is still a lot that needs to be done to improve it more,” Pretorius said.
“Competitiveness will improve as skill improves, intensity increases and matches become more clinical.”
Vimbela felt a change to the structure of the domestic league would be beneficial.
“There is a lot that we can do to improve the game and the format, for example play weekly and include gym and training sessions in between,” Vimblea said.
“This will help with keeping players well-conditioned, and hopefully as we turn professional, such things will be implemented.”
The second week of competition in the TNL will be played between 31 May and 5 June, and the final week will be contested between 13-19 June.
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