Tadious Manyepo
Zimpapers Sport
THE Gems have reaffirmed their status as one of the fastest-improving netball teams in the world by winning a bronze medal after beating Northern Ireland 55-49 in the Celtic Cup at the Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Scotland on Sunday.
It was the first tournament Zimbabwe took part in, outside Africa, apart from the World Cup, having been part of the latter’s cast in Liverpool, England, in 2019.
Ropafadzo Mutsauki girls gave it their all in the four-team tournament and in the end managed to finish third on a roster where they were the lowest ranked.
Wales won the tournament after beating Scotland in the final.
But they never cruised when playing the Gems in the round-robin after they were restricted to a 50-46 win by a Zimbabwe side inspired by captain of the day Takadanaishe Assah Zimusi.
Having also lost to Scotland but getting over the Northern Ireland Warriors in the initial phase, Zimbabwe finished third and had to face-off against the latter in the third-place play-off.
They were super-charged especially in the second half having trailed in the first two quarters.
Goalkeeper Elizabeth Mushore, who was deservedly named the player-of-the-match, initiated some key moments thanks to her solid marking that handed Zimbabwe some decisive turn-overs.
Zimbabwe had two warm-up games against the Welsh Feathers in Cardiff last week and lost both.
“We are very happy after winning the match against Northern Ireland. It was a tough match as compared to our first outing against them,” said Mutsauki.
“The opponent was serious and they came out prepared but we were more than ready for them.
“I am very happy because we managed to win. It is something that motivates us a lot given where we want to go as a team.
“These two wins will go a long way in terms of our ranking. We need to continue pushing to improve our rankings.
“We pray that we get more opportunities like this for us to continue growing as a netball nation. What is important is for us as a team to go out there and be able to learn one or two things.
“I think we got very good exposure and that is what we often crave for and we are very thankful to the organisers of this event.”
The Gems now face a tough test, this time a friendly match against England in Manchester tonight.
The Vitality Roses are ranked second in the world and won silver at the 2023 Netball World Cup in South Africa.