Stellenbosch University’s (SU) Maties netball team recently lost 39-54 against the University of Johannesburg (UJ) during the opening Varsity Netball match.
SMF News attended the match, which took place at the Coetzenburg Indoor Centre in Stellenbosch on 24 August at 13:00.
Stellenbosch is hosting the Varsity Netball bumper weekend for a second time, according to Charlé Swart, sport manager for Maties Sport.
The opening match was the first of eight matches to occur over the course of two days, according to the fixtures posted on Instagram by Maties Sport.
The University of Johannesburg and Stellenbosch University netball teams sing the national anthem before the start of the Varsity Netball opening match at Coetzenburg Indoor Centre on 24 August. SMF News was in attendance. PHOTO: Buhle Bam
“This year’s Varsity Netball bumper weekend is special because Stellenbosch is once again the host, after not staging the event last year,” said Swart.
According to Swart, bumper weekends are opportunities for spectators to enjoy back-to-back matches and a great atmosphere over two days.
The 2025 Varsity Netball tournament is “structured around three bumper weekends and a centralised round, followed by the play-offs”, said Swart.
The next Varsity Netball bumper weekends will take place in Bloemfontein, Potchefstroom, Pretoria, and Johannesburg, and the tournament finals will take place on 29 September, she said.
Maties starts strong
UJ won the coin toss and started the match, but it was Maties who scored the opening goal.
By the end of the first quarter, Maties was leading 13-10.
Left to right: Mlungisi Mahumane, Koketso Skhosana, and Elarmo van der Poll, who came to support Maties at the Varsity Netball bumper opening match held at Coetzenburg Indoor Centre on 24 August. “I love the goalkeeper. She is doing so well,” said Skhosana, a BSc (Food Science) student at Stellenbosch University. PHOTO: Buhle Bam
Koketso Skhosana, a BSc (Food Science) student at SU, said that he thought that Maties was faring well at that stage.
“We’re doing so well,” said Skhosana. “[Maties’] defence is good.”
UJ takes the lead
In the second quarter, UJ made a strong comeback, resulting in them taking the lead for the remainder of the match. By halftime, UJ held a six-goal lead.
“The comeback from UJ, I think it’s a good thing,” said David Mudao, a UJ alumnus who attended the match.
According to Mudao, it was clear that the UJ team was starting to find their groove.
“The introduction of Kubura [Abubakar] as a goal shooter […] was a good one,” said Mudao.
“I believe we will win this match,” said David Modao, a University of Johannesburg alumnus in attendance at the Varsity Netball bumper weekend opening match at Coetzenburg Indoor Centre on 24 August. PHOTO: Buhle Bam
Looking ahead
“I was nervous going in,” said Kubura Abubakar, UJ goal shooter. “It’s such an amazing experience, you know, winning and where we are right now.”
“We just need to keep utilising what we’re doing and stay where we are, and be consistent,” said Abubakar, looking ahead to the rest of the tournament.
According to Syntiche Kabuya, Maties captain and goalkeeper, the Maties team is aware of the errors they made in the match.
“We had a really good start to the match, but I think we let it slip a bit and we got in our heads a bit,” said Kabuya. “We have a couple of things that we have to work on. […] We’re going to come back stronger than ever.”
Day two of the bumper weekend will begin on 25 August at 13:00, according to Swart. Maties will be playing against the University of Witwatersrand at 19:00, according to the fixtures posted on Instagram by Maties Sport.