adminVeronica Gwaze
Sports Reporter
BLACK Rhinos Netball Club head coach Rangarirayi Musarurwa has vowed that his side will fight to maintain dominance at the top of the Premier Netball League table.
The army outfit lead the NPL log standings with 12 points after six outings ahead of Platinum Queens who have amassed 10 points from five outings.
This comes after the Musarurwa-led charges walloped Harare Polytechnic and Zupco Queens 100-10 and 57-24 respectively in a double thriller in Marondera at the weekend.
Rhinos’ coach Musarurwa reckons his charges are currently enjoying a purple patch and that they have to absorb the pressure of maintaining dominance.
“Being on top at any stage, which is not the final match, does not guarantee us the championship so we are actually in a demanding race because we have something to protect,” he said.
“We have a lot of work to do, we should approach each match with caution, we cannot afford to lose any points so we have to brace up because there are no smaller teams in netball.”
The Rhinos gaffer attributed the fine run to timely pre-season preparations.
He said the position comes with a lot of responsibility which has also motivated his players to put in extra effort.
“The position actually comes with a lot of responsibility, it has motivated the players to put extra effort knowing they have something to fight for,” Musarurwa said.
“We are yet to clash with some of those who were in the top four last year, while we acknowledge that there are no smaller teams in netball, we need to be more cautious with the four so the players are actually putting themselves at task, they are pushing each other as a team which is what we want.
“The ladies’ players are showing much effort in every game despite the strength of the other team.”
The army team also acquired veteran players like former national team and ZDF defender Media Mafuta and renowned Falcon Queens player Sonia Juma to bolster their squad.
And Musarurwa feels the acquisitions are paying off.
“I have new players who had to train and gel with the team.
“They may be established players but we had to train them extensively so that they link or get used to our kind of game and I am satisfied so far,” Musarurwa said.
In other matches, Platinum Queens emerged top in their bubble, defeating Masvingo Queens 59-20, Beitbridge Border Stars 46-18 and perennial rivals ZDF 49-39 in an edgy match which was abandoned five minutes from full-time.
At Ngezi’s Baobab Netball grounds, the hosts Ngezi Platinum Queens thwarted bitter rivals Harare City 49-36 before falling 36-40 to Green Fuels.
Fillchrist Ladies also put up a fine show at University of Zimbabwe grounds where they defeated Mrehwa Queens and Waterfalls 75-21 and 66-20 respectively in lop-sided encounters.
This earned them an improvement on the log standings to position four, up from seven. At the same venue, the hosts narrowly defeated Waterfalls Queens 47-41.
Rainbow Netball Amatuer League also had a busy weekend with champions Glow Petroleum Queens walloping Support Unit 106-6 and Shamva Mine 124-4 at Morris Depot Grounds.
Police outfit Mambas Queens also defeated prison side Tenax 54-31 and Hi-Fliers 124-4 while Correctional Queens also beat Coal City and Khami Prison 74-35 and 68-25 respectively.
Online Reporter