Online Reporter
Zimpapers Sports Hub
The Zimbabwe Netball Association have resolved that the Zambezi Eagles, their national select side, will continue to participate in competitions, including the Telkom Netball League in South Africa as part of a broader objective of long-term athlete development.
ZINA technical director, John Banda, emphasised that the Eagles are here to stay as part of ZINA’s efforts to build a strong national team.
Banda made the remarks as the Zambezi Eagles returned to South Africa for the Telkom Netball League Power Week Two which got underway at Sun City yesterday.
They are up against some of the South African top clubs with the Second Week scheduled to run until Tuesday.
The Zambezi Eagles, who are under the guidance of national coach Ropafadzo Mutsauki, opened their Second Week account on a losing note when narrowly going down 54-59 to Free State Crinums.
It was a close contest between the two sides, but the Zambezi Eagles sort of shot themselves in the foot by conceding too many turn-overs and missing a glut of good chances.
The Zambezi Eagles were part of Power Week One and Banda said they are looking at continuous exposure for the players.
“It’s like the South African teams now know how we play. For us, that’s not a problem . . . When they up their game, it also means more exposure for our coaches, more exposure for our teams.
“We are also taking a different approach altogether. So, basically, that is what we are looking at. And again, we are looking at a situation whereby this Eagles team is not just going to be a team which is going to be non-existent immediately after the Telkom tournament.
“They are there to stay. We are taking this one now as a developmental squad so that it becomes sort of a structured way whereby we have got players coming out from our junior teams, coming out from clubs, and then they get into the Eagles team.
“And then from there, there’s transition from the Eagles team into the Gems team,” said Banda.
The select side competing in South Africa is a mix of young players and seasoned Gems players.
But Banda noted that in the future, they are going to drop the senior players to accommodate new talent that can be nurtured to feed the national team.
“With the senior team’s players in the Eagles team, we needed them there so that the juniors were playing alongside the senior players. By doing so, they are also mentoring the junior players as well. We just brought in a few Gems players into the Eagles team just to bring in the depth that we needed.
“As we are progressing, we are now going to remove all those players who are in the Gems team. “They go back to the Gems team.”
The technical team is looking at building a strong team for the Africa Cup later this year and the World Cup qualifiers next year, as Zimbabwe seek a third appearance at the global tournament in 2027.
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