As the highly anticipated Netball World Cup in South Africa gears up to begin, player security fears have shaken the competition. Jamaica's netball captain and West Coast Fever star, Jhaniele Fowler, fell victim to a robbery just 24 hours before the tournament's tip off.
The 34-year-old shooter took to Instagram to share the distressing incident, revealing that she had been robbed and faced attempts of intrusion into her room in South Africa. Fowler expressed her frustration, stating, "This is so unfortunate, this place isn't safe. First, they stole money from my purse, now people are trying to come in on us in our rooms. Really!"
Fowler's experience has heightened concerns about the safety and security of players during the prestigious event. With the World Cup set to begin on Friday, players and officials are anxious about ensuring the safety of all participants.
Despite the unsettling incident, Fowler remains focused on leading Jamaica to a first-ever world title. Speaking about Jamaica's World Cup campaign, she expressed their strong desire to "bring gold back to Jamaica." With Fowler's experience and leadership, the team is optimistic about their chances of winning the coveted title.
"Our aim is to be here until the end and be on that podium, but we have to take it one game at a time," said Fowler, emphasizing the team's focus on taking each match step by step.
'Job not done' for Springboks after All Blacks triumph, says Kolisi
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi warned his team the job is far from done despite them rallying for a thrilling victory over New Zealand in the Rugby Championship on Saturday.
The Springboks secured a 31-27 win over the All Blacks at Ellis Park, coming from behind with two late tries from Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Grant Williams.
The victory hauled South Africa onto 14 points in the Championship standings as they bid to end New Zealand's four-year stranglehold on the title, but Kolisi says there is still work to be done.
Addressing the capacity crowd in his post-match interview, Kolisi said: "We play for a lot but you people are our number one motivation.
"We appreciate you every single day. Please don't stop. When times are tough, please keep supporting us. We cannot do it without you.
"We respect the All Blacks. No matter what people say about them, when they need to turn up, they turn up. We believed in ourselves, we didn't panic, and we did what we wanted.
"They were catching us on the exit. After the first try in the second half, we picked it up. I'm really proud of the boys but the job is not done."
All Blacks captain Scott Barrett, meanwhile, was proud of his team-mates' efforts but admitted they had just fallen short of putting together a complete performance.
"Well done to the Springboks, it showed the class team they are," he said. "We weren't quite good enough. We were good for 62 minutes and it's an 80-minute game.
"There were two key moments after kick-offs where we couldn't quite get out of our half and they punished us. It was a huge effort, we're certainly proud, but it was just not quite to be.
"We'll regroup pretty quickly. Some guys have played here for the first time. It's intense and we'll have to be better next week."
South Africa host New Zealand again in Cape Town next week, while Australia go to Argentina for their round-three matchup.
Denise Alleyne highlights positives despite Bajan Gems 0-3 loss to Northern Ireland in Paradise Cup Series
Despite being swept 0-3 by Northern Ireland Warriors in a three-match Paradise Cup series, Barbados Gems head coach Denise Alleyne took heart from her team’s performances, as she believes the experience will serve them well going forward.
For Alleyne, the fact that young players from the 15th-ranked Gems were exposed to rubbing shoulders with more seasoned players was an even bigger highlight of their campaign against 11th ranked Northern Ireland, which ended at the Sir Garfield Sobers Gymnasium on Tuesday.
Northern Ireland won 53-43, 66-39, and 55-45.
“The biggest takeaway from the Northern Ireland Test series for me was the introduction of the new young players, especially ones that came forward from the Under-21, and just having a glimpse of what the future of netball could be,” Alleyne said.
“I was so very proud of their performance, even the ones who only played for a quarter. They went on and gave 100 per cent. So it gave me some hope, because, as you know, the team does have a mix of older and younger players, and then there are some in between who would have been Under-21 nationals just a couple of years ago, so it is a good mix,” she added.
Alleyne explained that tournaments like these are important to the Barbados’ netball development and that of younger players, in particular, as they displayed grit and commitment throughout, even as the odds were stacked against them in more ways than one.
“I did see a lot of individual improvement, in terms of player development both on and off the court. The girls played with a lot of heart. I knew that it would have been a challenge – I did believe that we could have won at least one of the games, because I don’t think Northern Ireland is 20 or 30 goals better than we are,” Alleyne told Barbados Today.
“But you know, we had circumstances with injuries and stuff, and we also had situations where people had to go to work and then hustle to get there for the game in the evening time. So that too would have played a part in how rested and prepared people were for the game on the night. But it is a circumstance beyond our control,” she noted, adding that she anticipates significant growth over time.
Chase: Allowing West Indies to play 'natural game' crucial in South Africa win
Roston Chase insisted that allowing his West Indies team to play their natural game was crucial in securing an emphatic series win over South Africa.
In a rain-affected third T20I on Tuesday, the Windies emerged victors by eight wickets as they chased down the Proteas revised 108 run target in just 9.2 overs.
The visitors reached 23 runs without loss before play was stopped at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, with Tristan Stubbs scoring 40 runs from 15 balls upon play resuming.
Aiden Markram (20) and Reeza Hendricks (27) also contributed to South Africa's total, with Romario Shepherd ending with figures of 2-14 for the Windies.
Despite the early loss of Alick Athanaze (one) after just the fourth ball, Shai Hope (42) and Nicholas Pooran (35) handed the hosts the advantage.
Shimron Hetmyer's 31 from 17 balls secured the triumph, with West Indies captain Chase pleased with his team-mates playing their natural game in the shorter format.
"It was a good one [leading this time]. We wanted to win the series 3-0. I just asked the boys to give me victory because you want to start well," Chase said.
"The powerplay, we were doing well. I just thought that today the guys came out and applied pressure early.
"In a shortened game, we want guys to go and play their natural game. Guys came out and played brilliantly."
Shepherd was named the man of the match with his impressive bowling display, securing the wickets of Ryan Rickelton (27) and Markram.
The 29-year-old was not part of the Windies squad for the T20 World Cup in June, but was happy to exact their three-wicket defeat against the Proteas at the tournament.
"It's just about sticking to the process. Today was quite difficult because of the wet ball. The wicket was sticky," Shepherd said.
"I think I'm 70% there. You are never 100% in T20 cricket. To come and clean sweep the team which knocked us out of the World Cup was great."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
