Potchefstroom — Cecilia Molokwane stopped short of describing herself as a contented leader who had achieved the goals and objectives that she had set herself, upon taking over as president of Netball South Africa in 2017.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Women’s Netball Championships at North West University’s Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds, Molokwane gushed about the sport’s growth and the fact that NSA will be hosting the World Cup next year.
“That was our aim when we came in – hence the hashtag ‘taking netball back to the people’. We wanted people to be part of netball, to understand that they belong to netball and that it is not for specific people. So, we took it back and told districts that this is your chance to show what you can do. We also have the Club Championships which boosts most districts to have more players,” Molokwane said.
“This year’s participation has increased so dramatically and it is overwhelming for us as Netball South Africa. It is happening during our term and that is very humbling for us. There are 100 teams here and I thought that last year was big, but it means we keep increasing the number. It is good for netball. It means the sport is growing in the country.”
What pleases Molokwane the most is the fact that netball is growing, despite the fact that women have other sports to choose from.
“You must remember that we are competing for the attention of these girls with the other sports like soccer, rugby and cricket because the girls play those,” she said.
But she would love to see much more improvement and her goal is for netball to be accessible to girls in the far-flung areas of South Africa. And she is hopeful that the World Cup that NSA will be hosting in Cape Town next year will leave that kind of legacy.
“For me, reaching that girl in the farm area who is not reached – that is the dream for me. Reaching that deaf girl who wants to play netball; reaching the intellectually impaired girl who wants to play netball. That rural and village girl must be able to say I have an opportunity to play netball now. That would be a dream come true for me,” Molokwane said.
While she has been advocating for netball to turn professional, she admits that it won’t be any good if such a move does not benefit everybody.
“I’ve been singing the song of turning netball professional for a while now, but what’s the use of turning professional and there are other players who are left out? For me, I would like to see the legacy of the World Cup being that the sport is taken to places where it is not played,” Molokwane said.
IOL Sport