THE top two women’s hockey teams in Africa will battle it out in Swakopmund this weekend when Namibia host South Africa in the five-match Investec Indoor Hockey Test series.
Namibia have steadily improved against their southern African neighbours in recent years and will be hoping to build on those performances on home soil.
In 2014 Namibia beat South Africa for the first time in a 4-3 thriller in Windhoek, but they lost the series 2-1 as SA qualified for the 2015 World Cup.
That victory was no fluke and in December last year, Namibia beat South Africa for the first time away at a Four Nations tournament in Durban. It was another thriller, with Namibia recovering from a 2-1 halftime deficit to win the match 3-2.
Namibia also beat the United States 3-2 to reach the final, but this time the South Africans gained revenge with a thorough 6-0 victory.
In August this year, the two sides once again met in an indoor series in Durban, with South Africa winning another close series. They won three tests to Namibia’s one, with one match drawn, as Namibia once again showed that they had narrowed the gap on their powerful neighbours.
By then, Namibia reached their highest world ranking of 14th compared to South Africa’s 11th although both nations have dropped down a place since then.
Now they square up again and Namibian coach Erwin Handura is determined to continue improving against South Africa.
“In our last series we improved with each game, but we have to improve our results. The last time we won one match and drew one, but we should also have won that one – we had two shots cleared off the line. I am pleased that we are creating chances, but we have to make use of them,” he said.
The Namibian team has been training in Swakopmund for the past week and Handura said they are well prepared.
“I’d say we are better prepared than for the Durban series in August. The players are fitter and we have worked hard on our tactics. We arrived here on Sunday and have been training every day. On Tuesday we also played a match against a local men’s team that we won,” he said.
The series serves as preparation for next year’s African World Cup qualifier, and Handura has named a very young Namibian squad with the eye on developing them for the future.
Most of the players are still under 23 years of age, with half of the team under 21.
It includes three school girls, with Dure Boshoff the youngest at 16 years, while Dunelle van Taak and Sunell Ludwig are both 18. Furthermore, four players will be making their international debuts, namely Ludwig, Boshoff, Zaan Marie Niemand and Lidia Simon.
The experienced players in the squad include captain Maggie Mengo, vice captain Jerrica Bartlett, Marcia Venter and Jocelle Deysel.
Despite his youthful side, Handura has faith in his team.
“We want to develop our younger players for the future, so this is a very good opportunity. Dure is only 16, but she has a good temperament, she’s well conditioned and fast and she has good hockey skills,” he said.
South Africa has also included some upcoming young players, as well as several experienced international players like Shelley Higgo, Jessica O’ Connor, Cindy Hack and Kelly Madsen.
The Test series takes place at the Dome from Friday to Sunday. Two tests will be played Friday and Saturday, at 11h00 and 19h00 on each day, while the final test will be played at 09h00 on Sunday.
Handura called on Namibian fans to support their team and watch top class hockey.
“Come and enjoy some excellent hockey at the highest level. The top two teams in Africa are in action, so the speed and skill on display should be a treat for everyone,” he said.
