The Tuks netball team hopes to get going when the going gets tough during the Varsity Netball Tournament. But it is not going to be easy.
If there is one phrase Jenny van Dyk (Tuks head coach) hates to use, it is that her team is in a rebuilding phase. Unfortunately, for now, it is what it is. Only three of the team’s players have Varsity Tournament experience.
“The one on escapable reality in sport is that in the end, to win it all boils down to experience. You are on the back foot if you don’t have it. At the start of the year, we knew we would face an uphill battle.
“Still, I am confident that the team can give a good account of themselves. The players have put in a lot of hard work in the buildup to the tournament. They will make up what they might lack in experience with passion and guts.
“Our goal will be to try and play at a high intensity in every game. If the players do, there is a chance that Tuks can qualify for the semifinals. But it is not going to be easy. We will have to come up with two ‘big’ victories.”
Van Dyk views UJ as the team to beat as they got a star-studded lineup. According to her, maties and Kovsies are the other two title contenders. In a way, Vand Dyk is excited to be coaching the underdogs.
“I got to a stage as a coach where I was in a comfort zone, taking things for granted. When Tuks or any other team I coached won, it did not excite me as much as it would in the past.
“It was not a good situation to be in. I needed a reality check. Luckily it has happened this year. I now again realise the importance of thinking outside the box and being innovative. I am starting from scratch to find ways to improve things, which is exciting. It has rekindled my passion for coaching to get teams to win. I consider this one of my career’s most critical phases.”
Tuks starts their Varsity campaign on Saturday (19:00), playing the Madibaz in Tuks’s Rembrandt Hall. On Sunday, they play TUT (15:00) and Monday, Maties (19:00).
