Skills can be learned, tactics can be taught, fitness can be drilled, but there is no substitute for “heart”. The North-West University (NWU) Eagles’ Varsity Netball team has this heart not in spades, but in enough buckets to fill a truck.

On Monday, 11 September, coach Elsunet du Plessis’s team will square off against UJ in the semi-final of the Varsity Cup competition, having finished second on the overall log after undefeated UP-Tuks.

Although the Eagles team lost by 67–52 against UP-Tuks, they have shown all the hallmarks of a champion side throughout the tournament and will not be lacking in confidence when the play-offs come.

“This team is an exceptional group of people. They have proved time and again that they are a team that plays for each other. They have grown so much despite all the ups and the downs,” says Heléne Botha, sports manager of netball, among other sports, at the NWU’s Potchefstroom Campus. 

“They were devasted after their loss to UP-Tuks on Monday, but on Wednesday morning they participated as a group in the university’s Run with Colour Fun. This just goes to show their character. For them, it is not just about playing netball, it is about representing the NWU, it is about being part of the beating heart of this institution. Win or lose, for me they are the epitome of what sport should be about.”

The Run With Colour Fun was a race organised by the Faculty of Health Sciences to raise awareness about gender.

“A semi-final is a whole new ball game. It is about the team that utilises the best of their skills and that employs the most effective game plan. I believe in this group of players. We have been there, we have done this, and with the amazing support we have, they have everything they need to reach the final. To say that I am immensely proud of them is an understatement. What I feel goes beyond words,” Botha explains.

And, above all, they have “heart”.

Part of the NWU Eagle’s netball team who took part in Wednesday morning’s Run With Colour Fun race.