Spar Proteas coach Jenny Van Dyk praised the team for their resilience despite suffering a defeat against England in the Vitality Netball Nations Cup final on Sunday at the Copper Box Arena in London.
The national netball team defeated Malawi on Saturday and advanced to the final against England on Sunday, where they were narrowly beaten 61-55.
Van Dyk commended the team for their efforts, even when they were outnumbered in the third quarter.
This after centre Refiloe Nketsa was sent off for dangerous play, leaving the team to play with half a dozen players for six minutes.
“Coming back into the game with only six players, I thought that truly reflected the South African character and our nation’s spirit,” Van Dyk said.
“It’s about finishing strong, and we said from the start that it was important for us to stay in the game, and I felt we did.”
She also acknowledged the challenge posed by Nketsa’s sending-off, admitting she was unsure of what had happened.
“I’m not quite sure what occurred there, but we’ll need to review what went wrong. However, there are no excuses today. We spent six minutes with just six players on the court in a final, and we had to ask ourselves what happened there.
“At the end of the day, there are no excuses for us. We had a great campaign, but we’ve been away from home for a long time.
“That said, I’m incredibly proud of my players. They showed remarkable character. Congratulations to England for their strong performance,” Van Dyk concluded.
