Proteas ready to ‘hit the ground running’ against formidable Jamaica

Touring for the first time under new leadership, the Proteas netball squad will turn out as underdogs against Jamaica in a three-match series starting in Kingston on Saturday, but head coach Jenny van Dyk is confident her team can put up a fight.

The SA team travelled for 34 hours to get to the Caribbean nation, arriving in Kingston last weekend, but Van Dyk was satisfied with their build-up, with the squad having since had a chance to acclimatise and train in the conditions.

While the national side have not beaten Jamaica since the 2019 World Cup, and they needed to dig deep to give themselves a chance, Van Dyk insisted they had the ability to stun their hosts, and she wanted her team to make an explosive start on Saturday.

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Raising the standard

“We want to make sure we hit the ground running. It’s important for us to put ourselves in a position where we’re competitive enough to grind and work towards a win at the end,” Van Dyk said.

“We know it’s easier said than done because we’re playing against a great side, but we will never tour anywhere without the goal of winning. Our goal is always to go out there, put our best on court and work towards the win.

“But it’s also about the standard. The wins will come if the standard of netball is high enough. Our error rate needs to be really low in order to keep up, and if we can put that standard on court, we will definitely have a chance to compete for the win.”

Proteas must adapt

In their only two assignments since Van Dyk was appointed head coach and Khanyisa Chawane was named captain, the Proteas secured a 3-0 series victory over Malawi in November and won the Africa Netball Cup in December.

Chawane, however, admitted the higher-ranked Jamaica team would provide a much stiffer challenge, though she agreed with Van Dyk that they had sufficient preparation.

“As a netball player you need to be adaptable, and that’s what we’re trying to do as a team. Every side we face we try to adapt to their style while still keeping our own unique approach,” Chawane said.

“So it is going to be hard but we’re looking forward to it. Our coaches have a plan, and it’s just up to us to buy in and execute everything they put out for us, but our preparation has been good and it looks promising.”