The Proteas were outclassed 67-49 and handed their first loss of the Netball World Cup by a dominant performance by Jamaica at the Cape Town International Convention Centre on Sunday.
The nerves for both teams were evident early in the game, but the atmosphere of the clash felt like it was a final as the fans knew they had to make themselves heard.
On the court, Karla Pretorius and Phumza Maweni had their hands full with Jamaica’s goal scorer Jhaniele Fowler, whose height was a clear advantage for the Sunshine Girls.
But, the ever accurate Elmere’ van der Berg and Lenize Potgieter managed to get South Africa one point ahead by the 14th minute.
However, if wasn’t long before Jamaica were able to get themselves in front thanks to Fowler, who was proving to be a problem for the hosts.
FT: SA 49 - 67 Jamaica
— Zaahier Adams (@ZaahierAdams) July 30, 2023
Down but not out … the #SPARProteas will live to fight again tomorrow against Trinidad&Tobago in their first “Super Six” clash. @IOLsport #NetballWorldCup pic.twitter.com/SVDnVJKWt4
There was good defensive pressure from the Proteas, but Fowler’s accuracy couldn’t be stopped as Jamaica eventually built up a lead worth seven points in Q2.
Norma Plummer substituted van der Berg for Nichole Taljaard, and her impact was almost instant as she managed to get the Proteas some much needed time on the ball, and most importantly, points.
In the second half, Jamaica picked up where their left off in the second half and continued their dominance, eventually taking the game away from South Africa.
As the game entered its final stages, the Proteas looked to get themselves back in the game, but struggled against the Jamaicans, who were growing in confidence.
Ine-Mari Venter was brought on in Q4, and she was able to put some points on the board, but the damage was already done, and the Jamaicans were cruising.
In the end, Jamaica walked away with a convincing 67-49 win, much to the disappointment of the home crowd.
The loss means that South Africa will finish second in Group C, behind Jamaica, who won all three of their games. The Proteas will now take on Trinidad and Tobago in their first game of stage 2 on Monday at 6pm.
After that, they will face world champions New Zealand on Wednesday, and then Uganda on Thursday.
The semi-finals take place on Saturday with the final on Sunday the 6th of August.
IOL Sport