Netball Proteas fall just short against world champions Australia
South Africa suffered a close four-point defeat to Australia in London on Saturday evening.
The 54-50 defeat was the Proteas’ closest losing margin in history the two sides have crossed swords against each other.
It was a tit-for-tat battle between the northern- and southern-hemisphere sides.
The Proteas side took an early lead, with Maryke Holtzhauzen landing the first shot. South Africa claimed an early three-point lead after the first 15 minutes of the encounter.
The Proteas enjoyed a mere three-point lead after the first quarter to give them a further confidence boost.
The world champions extended their lead by four goals shortly after the break, but the South Africans clawed their way back to get within a point with a minute to go to the recess.
The Aussies landed counter blows, but the Proteas levelled the scores shortly before the break before the Proteas claimed a one-point (26-25) at the recess.
Congratulations to the player of the match, South African captain @BongiweMsomi2 #QuadSeries
— Samsung Diamonds (@AussieDiamonds) January 20, 2018
The match swung in the Australians’ favour as they gained a one-point lead over their southern-hemisphere counterpoints in the third quarter.
The match turned into a bun-fight in the last few minutes as South Africa inched closer towards a historic victory over the world’s best side. The side from Down Under refused to give way to the tenacious Proteas side that got within a point with only 15 minutes left in the encounter
South Africa levelled the scores three minutes into the final quarter to strengthen their chances of claiming a famous victory over the world champions.
The final few minutes of the match developed into a hard-fought battle as the scores changed hands.
The Australians landed a last few deciding blows to leave South Africa within four points of a famous victory.
IOL Sport