Taking Netball To The Next Level

ELIZABETH JOSEPH
Imvula Anna, Edward Martin and Emeryne Immath

It was on the 22nd of February this year when Ella du Plessis netball team went on trip to Outjo for the Gravity cup.

This trip was composed of 18 girls of whom 10 were under 19 and 8 under 17. They went to Outjo whereby they had to take part in the Gravity cup against 3 schools namely Tsumeb Gymnasium , Etosha Secondary School and Windhoek High School. They played five matches against all school and managed to win four , unfortunately to the last game whereby Tsumeb Gymnasium had to defeat them. The games seemed tough but as they always believed that Ella is tops, they never wanted to disappoint their school so they managed to go for the finals.

According to the netball team coach Mrs Kaurivi explained her feelings about the match , “I am very proud of the team and amazed at how disciplined they were , the game was tough but they really had the potential to bring out the best in them.” Furthermore , netball is one of the sports that are mostly played by the female learners in Namibian schools , but can it be really all about the wins and the trophies ? Well this is not it all , this sport actually comes with a lot of advantages . One of the team member Zita Kashupi said “As a netball player , wins do count but the important thing is doing what you enjoy most . This has been a hobby since I was a little girl , so for me to win I need to enjoy what I am doing.”

Never the less there are more advantages one can benefit from this sport. Netball can be an exercising form one can use to be fit. Fitness is one of the essential activity for one’s health. In addition with this sport one gets an advantage of exploring different places and meeting new people. The principal of the school Mr JJ Kavari explained how he felt when the team arrived from Outjo “I’m very happy. Sometimes learners have talents that they are good at but they do not make use of them , so I encourage the learners to make use of their talents because not everyone is academically wise and from their talents they can actually be someone in life.”

Ella is going to the next level; this is not where everything ends. Early this month the netball team had another tournament in Swakopmund with a few coastal schools.