Moorosi Tsiane

Luanda, Angola

NATIONAL netball under-20 team coach Ramafahla Thamae says a lack of commitment and sense of urgency were the main reasons behind his side’s dismal performance in the Africa Union Sports Council (AUSC) games played in Angola.

Lesotho lost all their four matches played in a round robin format against Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland and Botswana by the margins of 34-14, 79-3, 73-20 and 60-17 respectively.

The five losses meant that Lesotho finished last behind the four countries in this year’s edition and they went home empty handed.

Thamae told the Sunday Express that his charges could have done better, saying, “I am not happy because we kept committing silly mistakes which cost us”.

“I think the only match where we gave it our all was against Zimbabwe but all in all our attitude wasn’t right at all.

“Of course they had stage fright because it was the first time for some of them to play in this kind of tournament but that is not an excuse. However they are good players and I would recommend that they are kept together and whoever is going to coach the under-20 already has a base with these girls.”

Thamae said it was also incumbent upon the technical team and administrators to ensure adequate preparations and good conditions for the players to fully focus on doing well.

He also said the Lesotho Netball Association (LNA) needed to come up with proper development structures so that there could be “clear programs of scouting and talent identification”.

He said his future with the team would only be clarified after discussions with the LNA.