GABORONE – The Namibian netball team lost their opening match against Zambia at the African Union Sports Council (AUSC) Region Five, under-20 Youth Games underway in Gaborone, Botswana. The games kicked off on Thursday with netball, tennis, judo and football.
The Namibian players had a poor start to their game which they lost 28-51. Namibia found the going tough in the first and second quarters of the match as Zambia dominated.
The Zambians played fast-paced netball, which forced the Namibians into unwanted errors throughout the match.
The first quarter ended 6-15 in favour of Zambia. In the second quarter, Zambia continued where they left off, extending their lead to 12-29.
The Namibians started to gain some composure in the third quarter, scoring eight points compared to their dominant opponents, who scored nine in that quarter.
In the last quarter, Zambia continued with their fast-paced game, scoring 13 more points while Namibia only scored eight for a final score of 28-51.
Speaking to Nampa after the game, Namibia’s team coach Anna Kriel said Zambia were the better team on the day but she is confident her team will improve in their upcoming games.
“I am proud of our team because they gave it their all against a Zambian team that’s fitter than our players. We learned a lot from this match and going forward, we will work on all our mistakes so that we can start getting the results,” she said.
The u20 Games opening ceremony is slated for Friday afternoon. Competitions end on 16 December. – Nampa
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