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Ellina Mhlanga-Senior Sports Reporter
THE Zimbabwe senior netball team – the Gems – suffered another defeat at the ongoing Spar Diamond Challenge when they went down 72-37 to South Africa in Pretoria yesterday. It was their second loss at the tournament having lost 55-50 to South Africa’s invitational President’s XII in their opening encounter on Tuesday.
South Africa maintained their dominance on Zimbabwe when they put up a solid performance to emerge as the winners in yesterday’s one-sided encounter.
The hosts made clear their intention from the start when taking a 20-9 lead in the first quarter. They had the upper-hand, dominating the game with some good defence to restrict the visitors and were precise in their shooting.
The Gems struggled with their game, especially in the first half and could not keep up with their opponents. South Africa stretched their lead in the second quarter to go into the half-time break leading 38-17
The absence of leading goal shooter Sharon Bwanali due to an injury she picked on Tuesday also made it difficult for Zimbabwe.
In yesterday’s game, the Gems coaches were again forced to make an early change after goal keeper Sharleen Makusha limped off the court after a bad fall. She was replaced by Elizabeth Mushore.
Returning for the third quarter, Zimbabwe stepped up their game with the coaches making some adjustments to the side. But the damage had already been done.
Zimbabwe were trailing by 27 goals by the end of the third quarter.
Speaking after the game, Zimbabwe assistant coach, Tatenda Shinya, said they made some unnecessary mistakes on the court but adding that the officiating also contributed to their heavy defeat loss.
“I just want to praise my girls they played with a lot of character especially in the second half. In the first half we made some unnecessary mistakes. I think we had too much respect for the Proteas.
“And also the officials, I think they overprotect the Proteas that’s why I think they suffer when they go out there, they get too much protection here in Africa. So I think they have a lot to work (on) back there.
“We are learning, we are growing and I am sure coming into the next game we will do much better,” said Shinya.
South Africa coach, Norma Plummer, said their main target yesterday was trying some new combinations since they are looking at development of a broad base for their side.
Zimbabwe are using the tournament as part of their preparations for the 2023 World Cup to be hosted by South Africa.
On the positive side, the Gems technical team had the chance to try some new combinations. Commenting on their first game, Gems’ head coach Ropafadzo Mutsauki conceded there are areas they are still lagging behind. “Our shooting was the setback, it didn’t work out as we expected. So it’s another area we are going to work on. The situation was made worse when Sharon Bwanali got injured, it affected our game but overall the team played well.
“We are identifying the areas we are lacking, where we need to work hard and improve. So this tournament on our side is very important and we are discovering that there are certain areas we thought we were okay yet we still need to correct those areas.
“For instance, we need to put more attention on shooting,” said Mutsauki.
It’s not certain if Bwanali will be able to play the remaining matches slated for tomorrow and Saturday. “For now the doctors said she is out, we are not sure if she will be out until the end of the tournament. They will be assessing her and updating us on her status but I think for the next two days or more she will not be playing,” said Mutsauki.
Zimbabwe are up against Scotland tomorrow, hoping to pick their first points for the tournament.
Online Reporter