There seems to be no stopping UP-Tuks in the Varsity Netball Tournament at the moment.
In last night's game played at the Tuks Sports Centre, they outplayed VUT to win 87-22. It was the Tuks team's fourth straight victory which means they are close to securing a home semi-final.
The VUT players deserve credit for their fighting spirit and the way they kept on playing the game until the final whistle blew but the reality was it was like trying to stop "Hurricane Irma". The Tuks dominated from the start and never relented. Setting up the one attacking move after the other.
Tuks's dominance afforded Jenny van Dyk (coach) the luxury of testing various combinations, especially in the goal circle. In the last two-quarters, An-Marie van Deventer and Sanele Buthelezi made their debut for the team.
Rumandi Potgieter impressed in the first quarter playing goal-attack. She was at first the one that made sure the numbers on the scoreboard kept changing ever so often with her goal-scoring accuracy.
Juzelri Garbers (goal defence) who was instrumental in spoiling the "fun" for the VUT when they were on attack justly received the player of the match award.
If there were a prize for the most energetic player on the court, the UP-Tuks centre, Marlize de Bruin, would have been a definite contender. The way she played was the personification of the advertising slogan: "It keeps going, and going, and going."
If De Bruin was not helping to counter on defence, she was contributing to creating goal scoring opportunities. There was not a moment she was standing still.
Being on the run all the time, strategising while doing so is what De Bruin likes about playing centre.
"I love being in the thick of things," she explained.
According to her, the challenge for them in such a high scoring game was to try and keep playing to a structured plan, which is not always easy.
UP-Tuks has got one game left and will treat UWC with the same respect as the other six teams when they play them at home on Monday (25 September at 18h00).
Then the real question remains who UP Tuks will face in the semi-final. They could end up playing either Pukke, Kovsies or Maties in the semi-final.
De Bruin is of the opinion that they are capable of beating any of the three teams if they stick to the game plan and doing the basics right.
"The mistake we made in the games between Pukke and Maties were that we were off to a slow start and we relied too much on the 'Power Play' to wipe out the goal deficit. In Varsity Netball you got to be competitive from the whistle blows for the first time."
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