BOITUMELO MAKAEPEA
On October 7, UP TUKS met Maties in the Varsity Netball finals at the Rembrandt Hall where they beat them 48-43.
UP TUKS showed dominance in the competition as they were the first team to go through the competition unbeaten. The stripe generation met UFS Kovsies in 2018 where they were beat 63-59. This time UP TUKS came back with fire and style to claim the title. UP TUKS forced a strong lead in the first quarter as it ended with 14 goals to 10. However, Maties came back with passion in the second quarter to level the scores at 14 all. Just when it looked like UP TUKS was losing concentration, Maties took advantage and scored two goals to make it 14-16. Things took a different turn as the stripe generation came back with a strong lead of 22 goals to 17. Things took a different turn again when Maties ended the second quarter with a lead of 24 goals to 23 goals. The game was very much intercepted and filled with failed attempts and mistakes resulting from the pressure to score from both sides and very tightened defending tactics. The third quarter saw both teams fighting hard to take the lead but it ended with UP TUKS leading by 35 goals to 34 that resulted from Danielle van Zyl’s two double pointers.
The last quarter is known to be a very crucial quarter for both teams and it was. With emotions running high, it was a nail biting 15 minutes of the game, as Maties started off by taking a lead of 38 goals to 35 and this was not good for the home side. UP TUKS managed to get back into the game by taking back the lead, 43 goals to 40 goals. Maties tried to come back into the game by scoring three goals, but UP TUKS was already in winning mode and things ended with the stripe generation claiming victory of 48 goals to 43 goals from Maties. This was a very heated, and definitely an intense match as both teams showed excellent play. However, only one team could go home victorious. For the home side, this was inspiring play, as it was captain Tshina Mdau’s last match for TuksSport. She is doing her honours in BCom Agricultural Economics and has represented TuksSport since 2014. The night ended off with UP TUKS’ Lungile Mthembu being awarded the Wimpy Moment Maker, with FNB player of the Match and MTN Pulse Interceptor of the Match both going to players from Maties.
Image: @VarsityNetball – Twitter
