Moorosi Tsiane
NETBALL World Cup semifinalists South Africa were too hot to handle for Lesotho savaging them a staggering 116-10 in their opening match of the ongoing Africa Netball Cup on Friday in Cape Town, South Africa.
SPAR Proteas, as South African netball team is popularly known, went into the tournament three months after the England World Cup where it came fourth.
The World Cup was held from 12 to 21 July 2019 at the Liverpool Arena.
New Zealand won the tournament followed by Australia and England respectively.
And on Friday South Africa dominated the match in every department beating Lesotho tactically, speed and height.
The South Africans easily intercepted passes due to their height advantage while Lesotho were erratic in attack converting just 10 of their 20 chances.
Machela however, told the media after the match that he was proud of his girls despite the dismal performance. He said they were aware of what they were up against prior to the match since South Africa are heavyweights.
“Our team is still in the developmental phase and we knew that it was always going to be a tough match,” Machela said.
“We have the potential and I am proud of how my girls played today (Friday). We will go back to the drawing board to prepare for the next match.
“South Africa is one of the biggest netball nations in the world and I believe playing them was good exposure for my team. Our target is that one day we reach the same feat as they have. It is not going to be an easy task but we will keep on pushing.”
Despite improving their performance, the Lesotho girls were also thumped 74:24 by Kenya in their second match yesterday.
After yesterday’s match, Machela bemoaned her charges’ lack of height.
“We were much a better team today (yesterday) than we were in the first match. However, one of our biggest challenges here is the height. It has really worked against us,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lesotho Netball Association (LNA) president Sheila Moluoane has been elected Africa Netball treasurer. Moluoane was elected at the 17 October 2019 annual general meeting (AGM) in Cape Town.