The Maties netball team has advanced to the semi-finals of the Varsity Netball 2025 competition, following the final round of league fixtures on Monday evening (15 September).
They will travel to Bloemfontein to take on defending champions UFS Kovies in the semi-finals at Callie Human Hall at 19:00 on Monday 22 September.
There they will look to overturning their fate, after suffering a 47-55 defeat at the hands of Kovsies in round seven, yet they did not go down without a fight.
Both teams delivered high-intensity netball from the start. The Maroon Machine was on fire and ended the first quarter leading 12-10.
Maties picked up where they left off in the second quarter, dominating play and scoring quick goals to maintain and extend their lead.
Cheered on by their bench, Kovsies tried to fight back. Brilliant intercepts by Maties’ Syntiche Kabuya, however, denied UFS the chance capitalise on their chances (HT: 29-23).
In the third quarter Kovsies staged a remarkable comeback. Playing at high tempo and gunning for every ball, they pushed Maties on the backfoot and led 37-40 after the third stanza.
The final 15 minutes produced a physical and intense battle, with both sides pushing hard for a win.
Maties put up a fight, but Kovsies didn’t slow down their attacking dominance and they secured the vital triumph.
On Sunday (14 September), Maties secured a commanding 61-28 victory over Varsity College in the two sides’ round six meeting.
