Namibiaâ??s netball team opened their account with a comfortable 37-16 victory against Lesotho at the SADC Zone 6 Games on June 27.
Namibia held the upper hand from the start, taking a 11-3 lead after the first quarter. With goal shooter Moa Shipetekera in great form, Namibia continued to rake in the goals to take a halftime lead of 21-6.
Namibiaâ??s coach Andrew Hoaeb then took Shipetekere off and replaced her with Leenia Kambutuku, but Namibia continued to dominate the match. By the third quarter their lead had increased to 28-9, before they wrapped up the match 37-16.
In an earlier match South Africa got off to a winning start, beating Botswana 42-30. South Africa were always in command with their taller shooters, but Botswana gave a good account of themselves and pushed their southern neighbours all the way.
Namibia can do better â?? Hoaeb
Namibiaâ??s coach Hoaeb said he was happy with the win against Lesotho, although his team could still do better.
â??We started a bit slow, but by the second quarter the girls started playing much better. But the communication between our two shooters was not very good, so I took Shipetekera off at halftime,â? he said.
Hoaeb said he was not too concerned about the South African team.
â??I saw their match against Botswana, but I think we can beat them. We have some special tactics in store for South Africa,â? he said.