South African netball received another shot in the arm yesterday with the national federation announcing a new five-year sponsorship that will grow the sport from the grassroots level.
Soft drinks company Twizza is the latest local sponsor to throw their support behind Netball SA (NSA) since it was announced South Africa will host the Netball World Cup in 2023.
This comes a week after Telkom was named as the title sponsor for the premier domestic league that will start today in Pretoria.
When South Africa was announced as the host for the 2023 showpiece, NSA president Cecilia Molokwane made a call to corporates to get involved in the sport.
“Netball has again proved that it can offer a significant enough return that leading brands are willing to join hands with us as we look to lift the sport to new levels over the next few years,” Molokwane said.
“As a leading female sports federation, we are delighted that we have managed to attract more sponsors just at the right time, sponsors that will enable us to grow the game and take it back to the people. We are delighted to have Twizza on board, and we are eager to develop a strong partnership moving forward.”
While the latest announcements may not influence the national team for this year’s World Cup in Liverpool in July, the hope is that it will inspire the next generation of players.
NSA chief executive Blanche de la Guerre said the bid announcement had sparked interest from businesses and they hoped more would see the value of investing in the sport.
“The idea of the national league is to give the rest of the country’s players that are not playing overseas the opportunity to play and improve,” De la Guerre said.
“When you invest in netball you invest in the future of the country because there are so many opportunities, whether it is for players, coaches or technical positions.”
De la Guerre said there are approximately 2.5 million girls that play netball in the country.
She believed the partnership with Twizza would help them to unearth more talent from far-flung areas where they have not been exposed to the sport.
Meanwhile, De la Guerre said national P
Proteas coach Norma Plummer was encouraged by their preparations for the World Cup in July. The team recently had a training camp in Pretoria with the Proteas players that are currently in the country. “Norma was pleasantly surprised by the quality of work Dorette Badenhorst (Proteas assistant coach) has done with the players.
“She said she was delighted that Dorette has constantly worked with them. She said the moment they stepped onto the court, the fitness and conditioning of the players looked good.”
@ockertde
Pretoria News
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