TuksNetball hopes to get going when the going gets tough during the 2022 Varsity Netball tournament but it is not going to be easy. If there is one phrase the Tuks head coach, Jenny van Dyk, dislikes to use, it is that her team is in a rebuilding phase. Unfortunately, for now, it is what it is. Six players in the team squad will make their Varsity Netball debut this weekend.

"The one on escapable reality in sport is that in the end, to win it all boils down to experience. You are on the back foot if you don't have it. At the start of the year, we knew we would face an uphill battle. 

"Still, I am confident that the team can give a good account of themselves. The players have put in a lot of hard work in the build-up to the tournament. They will make up what they might lack in experience with passion and guts. 

"Our goal will be to try and play at a high intensity in every game. If the players do, there is a chance that Tuks can qualify for the semi-finals. But it is not going to be easy. We will have to come up with two 'big' victories."

Van Dyk views UJ as the team to beat as they got a star-studded line-up. According to her, Maties and Kovsies will also be title contenders. In a way, she is excited to be coaching the underdogs. 

"I got to a stage as a coach where I was in a comfort zone, taking things for granted. When Tuks or any other team I coached won, it did not excite me as much as it would in the past.

"It was not a good situation to be in. I needed a reality check. Luckily it has happened this year. I now again realise the importance of thinking outside the box and being innovative. I am starting from scratch to find ways to improve things, which is exciting. It has rekindled my passion for coaching to get teams to win. I consider this one of my career's most critical phases."

Tuks will start their 2022 Varsity Netball campaign battling it out against Madibaz in Round 1 at 7pm on Saturday, 17 September. In Round 2 and 3, Tuks will face TUT and Maties on Sunday and Monday respectively. This is the first bumper weekend hosted at the University of Pretoria.
 
Official TuksNetball squad: Alice Kennon, Amber Marshall, Blessing Sithole, Caroline Paul, Hitsakile Ndhlovu, Hope Sibiya, Imke Visser, Jamie van Wyk, Janine Moolman, Jessica Matjiu , Kylie van Wyk, Marichelle Visagie, Mbalenhle Ntuli, Melissa van Zyl, Milla Coetzee, Phophi Nematangari