Unbeaten Fireballs embrace target as TNL leaders

Coach Elsje Jordaan has said that although being top of the Telkom Netball League (TNL) standings makes the Gauteng Golden Fireballs a target, this is what they need.

The 2022 TNL champions are the only side that ended the opening week of the competition without tasting defeat. They sit on top of the Division One table with six victories, including a win over the defending champions, the Free State Crinums, who are second, with the North West Flames in third.

The second leg of the competition will return to Sun City, North West, from 13-17 June, with the last round set for 14-20 July. Jordaan says being on top will not only push their competitors to play hard, but it will also force them to bring their best on court.

“We welcome and understand the fact that being No. 1 on the log is almost like painting a target on your back. But we want every game to be a hard game, we want teams to bring their A game because when they bring their A game, it forces us to play better and to make smarter decisions,” said Jordaan.

She is, however, wary of speaking about the title just yet. Only three teams have won the competition since its inception in 2014. The Jaguars have won the competition a record six times, with the Free State Crinums second with four titles, while the Fireballs have won it once. Jordaan says that although the goal is to win the trophy, they are not thinking about the end goal at the moment.

“We enter the competition every year with the ambition to win it, and this year is no different, but that is still very far for us to start talking about winning the championship. It is obviously the goal, you shouldn’t be in a competition if winning it is not the goal.

"I promise you, we are literally playing it game for game, and even in game for game, we break it up to four quarters and then three fives (minutes). We try to focus on that and not look at the bigger picture too soon. Once we do our work and take care of how we play, we believe that the scoreboard will look after itself,” she explained.

Jordaan said it was tricky preparing for the opening round of the competition, as some teams had not been announced before the start of the season. She believes that returning to the Super Bowl will be different next month.

'PUSHING OUR STANDARDS'

“In the first Power Week, we were completely blind; we didn’t do a study of our opponents because we didn’t know how the teams would look like. The focus was all on us. Going into the second week, we now know and understand what our goals should be. 

"We are still working on pushing our standards and raising the bar on our standards. But now it becomes a discussion on who we are playing and starting to implement some counter plans, how we can counter and neutralise our opposition,” she said.

The former Baby Proteas coach says she is in awe of how much her team has grown over the years.

“It is still the same players, but they are a bit older, more experienced, and mature. That excites me a lot, to see how the Fireballs have grown as a team from 2022 to now. It’s not only about getting them to play netball and understand our game plan, but it is great to see some smart players making smart decisions.

"That is all up to the individual, it excites me. I honestly think the standard this year is already higher than it was last year because there are more teams that are competitive, and it’s not only the top three. You can see that in the scorelines,” she said.

The introduction of the Super Shot has seen a difference of opinions in netball circles. The Super Shot allows shooters to score two points from a dedicated area on the edge of the shooting circle during the final two minutes of the first or third quarter of the match.

Fireballs shooter Owethu Ngubane topped the Super Shot charts in the first Power Week. She managed to score nine times, doubling the points for her side from the long shots. Second was the Crinums’ Zandre Smith with seven shots.

Jordaan said she hopes the rule can apply to both teams during each period.

“I think it is quite exciting. I am just disappointed that we don’t introduce it on both sides every time it is called because it can become a massive coaching point.

"Currently, as it is, you only have the two minutes, which is short because in real time, you can only, more or less, take four centre passes in two minutes.

"I think it is exciting for the competition, just to juice up the competition a little. But out of a coaching perspective, I would have loved it if we could have used it for both teams in quarter one and quarter three and make the two minutes count for everybody,” she explained.