Netball Namibia on the rise

SENIOR national team head coach Manuel Tjivera is upbeat about the prospects of Namibian netball, after the country shot up the recent international rankings.

Namibia moved up five places to sit 28th globally on the International Netball Federation’s (INF) latest rankings announced on Monday.

The rankings reflect matches played up to 30 June, including the recent Netball Europe Open Challenge and the Namibia quad series.

“We’re quite excited about the new ranking. We’re really very happy, as this shows that we are on the right track. It’s a big boost for our players as this will encourage them to work harder and keep improving our ranking,” Tjivera told The Namibian Sport.

Ranked fifth, South Africa are the top-ranked African side, replacing Uganda, who remain seventh, with Malawi the second-best placed team on the continent in sixth position.

Following two victories in the Debmarine Namibia Pent Series last month, Zimbabwe move up two places into 13th, with Zambia and Botswana one place down each at 17th and 22nd.

Six teams have dropped off the rankings as they haven’t played the number of matches required to gain a ranking in the weighted time period, resulting in 34 teams now having an INF world ranking.

“Winning the Debmarine Namibia series does not mean we are there yet. It just means we are getting better, and we can only keep getting better if we keep playing international matches,” Tjivera cautioned.

“That’s why we are so grateful to Debmarine Namibia for supporting netball, and giving these young women the platform to express themselves and represent their country with pride.

“They really brought their A-Game and executed the game plan very well during the tournament,” he added.

While the top six nations in the rankings automatically qualify for next year’s World Cup in England, Namibia will look to reach the tournament through the Africa World Cup qualifiers, which take place in Lusaka, Zambia in August.

Already qualified are England as the host, with Malawi (6th), Australia (1st), New Zealand (3rd), Jamaica (4th), and South Africa (5th) also assured of their spots in Liverpool next year.

“The tournament [Debmarine Namibia Pent Series] was great exposure as it gave us much-needed action, which will help us in the World Cup qualifiers,” Tjivera said.

“The players are now aware of the level of competition they face, and also since the tournament, other countries are aware of what we are capable of.

“So, we need to go out there and compete. We are not going to Lusaka to make up the numbers. We are going to give our all.”

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.