The Namibia-South Africa Indoor Hockey Test series at the Windhoek Showgrounds has attracted enthusiastic support from fans, who turned out to witness the two sides battle it out in a closely contested series.
Namibia and South Africa played out an exciting 4-4 draw in the fifth and final Test Match of the Women’s Indoor Hockey Test Series in Windhoek on yesterday, bringing the series to an entertaining close.
Namibia won the opening Test 3-0 and the second 4-3, while South Africa bounced back to win the next two matches, leaving the series tied at 2-2 before yesterday’s draw. Both teams finished with two wins each, capping a competitive five-match series.
Namibia head coach Shayne Cormack said after the second match that South Africa had improved its ball movement and speed, making it difficult for her side to maintain its rhythm.
“They moved the ball around a lot better and quicker. They were anticipating our passes and picking us off a lot, so we had to dig deep to figure out how to create a smaller build-up,” she said.
Cormack added that Namibia struggled to maintain the flow and consistency they had displayed in the opening match, while their short-corner execution also needed improvement.
“Our flow wasn’t as good as it was last night. We had a really good start, but our short corners today were a problem. We couldn’t really push the ball out well,” she said.
She acknowledged South Africa’s strong response, saying both teams had areas to improve ahead of the remaining encounters.
“I thought they put up a really good fight. There were stages in the game where we just weren’t consistent enough, and we’re going to have to go and work on that,” Cormack said.
-lmupetami@nepc.com.na
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