By Chris Totobela
The Joza Indoor Sports Centre hosted an exciting netball tournament on Saturday, as part of the Goldrush Fabian Juries Community Fun Day 2024.
Eight netball teams contested the event. The teams were divided into two groups of four, each team playing three round-robin games. The top two teams from each group progressed to the semi-finals.
In the first semi-final, Joza Queens defeated Ghost Town Lions 13-5 and in the second semi-final, Fingo Villagers won 11-7 in a closely contested clash.
The stage was set for a great final, with netball fans, who packed the venue, anticipating a spectacular clash as two titans who contested last year’s controversial final, met again to resume their rivalry.
The final started at a blistering pace as was expected.
Fingo Villagers settled their nerves with two quick goals and seemed to control the game well, but Joza Queens fought their way back into the contest.
Boasting no less than three experienced players in their line-up, Fingo Villagers absorbed the pressure very well against a youthful and energetic Joza Queens. Both teams ended the first quarter locked at six goals a side.
In the second quarter, Fingo Villagers made some crucial positional changes which immediately paid off. The team also introduced one of their top goal scorers, who hit the ground running and scored important goals, some from awkward positions.
The nerves got the better of the youthful Joza side as they made too many mistakes and fumbled a lot of scoring chances as they seemed overwhelmed by the occasion.
Fingo Villagers controlled the game very well and saw off their opponents 15-12.
It was a well contested thrill-a-minute final that got the crowd on their feet for its entire duration. The champions’ game management was superb. What a great effort from the runners-up, they gave a very good account of themselves and the future looks bright for them.
Credit to both teams for displaying top quality netball on the day and hats off to both teams for displaying good sportsmanship after the game and they deserved the standing ovation from the well-behaved crowd on the day.
