Proteas netball star shooter Elmere van der Berg will be looking to help the team improve on its sixth-place 2022 Commonwealth Games finish in the upcoming edition on 23 July. She is one of three who played in 2022, alongside Khanyisa Chawane and Nicola Smith. (Photo: Reg Caldecott/Gallo Images) The good news: the festivities that accompany global sporting tournaments will not end on 19 July when the Fifa World Cup concludes, because just four days later, attention will turn to Glasgow, which is set to host this year’s edition of the Commonwealth Games.
The Scottish city stepped in as host after the Australian state of Victoria, the original host, withdrew, citing cost concerns. The scaled-down Games will feature only 10 sports, down from 19 in Birmingham 2022. While hockey and rugby sevens among other sports were axed, netball retained its place.
The Proteas netball team is looking to improve on its performance there, after a disappointing sixth-place finish at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. That was followed by another sixth-place finish at the 2023 Netball World Cup.
This is according to Proteas head coach Jenny van Dyk. Appointed in 2024, Van Dyk told Daily Maverick that the team is targeting a top-five finish, although its ultimate ambition is to reach the semifinals.
“A successful tournament would mean finishing at least fifth and improving on our sixth-place finish from the previous edition,” said Van Dyk. “But, we always have that dream about playing in the semifinals and progressing to a final. That’s what we’re working towards at the moment.”
/file/attachments/orphans/TL_2491509_797205.jpg "Proteas netball head coach Jenny van Dyk. (Photo: Reg Caldecott/Gallo Images)")
To achieve that, world No 5 South Africa (SA) will have to navigate a tough pool with first-ranked Australia, third-ranked England, eighth- and ninth-ranked Tonga and Malawi, and Northern Ireland, ranked at 14th.
Building depth
Reflecting on the disappointing results, Van Dyk said one of the first priorities was to build depth within the squad.
Ahead of Birmingham, star shooter Lenize Potgieter sustained an injury and was ruled out of the tournament. The team was unable to fill her spot, said Van Dyk, which hampered its campaign.
“From the start of our journey, we’ve been talking about the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games, where we finished sixth in both competitions,” said Van Dyk. “We had to take a hard look at where the issues were, and for us it had a lot to do with a lack of depth. There would be seven players playing every match, and that made us very predictable.”
Another area of improvement has been raising the team’s standard of play by maintaining intensity throughout matches, particularly into the second half.
“What is important is being able to pinpoint exactly what that means per position, and knowing the target we need to hit in order to be competitive. Being competitive means we need to put ourselves in a position where we can contest for a win,” said Van Dyk.
“The one thing that we have been lacking in the past, especially at playing up, is after halftime we lose our intensity completely and we can’t stay in the game,” she explained. “Going into the Games, we need to hit a target of at least 15 goals per quarter just to stay in the game, for us to be competitive at the end.”
/file/attachments/orphans/TL_2512038_646067.jpg "The Proteas claimed a historic 2-1 series win against England at the end of January this year, highlighting the progress made since their disappointing sixth-place finish in both the 2022 Commonwealth Games and 2023 Netball World Cup. (Photo: Reg Caldecott/Gallo Images)")
According to Van Dyk, the team has made progress, particularly after its 2-1 series victory over the English Roses at the start of February.
“We’re on the right track,” she said. “They are gaining confidence because they’re rubbing shoulders against the best the whole time.”
Before that, however, the Proteas toured New Zealand and Australia in 2025 and returned home winless, which was “a big wake-up call” for the team, said Van Dyk.
“That was one of the most important preparation phases for the Commonwealth Games, because playing against the best of the best in six Test matches really tested the players.”
An experienced squad
Heading into the Games, which begin on 23 July, the team includes only three players who featured in 2022: Khanyisa Chawane, Nicola Smith and Elmere van der Berg.
Veteran defender Karla Pretorius also returns to the tournament after missing the previous one, as she took a break from international netball.
Of the 12 players representing Team South Africa, seven have spent the year competing in international leagues. According to Van Dyk, that exposure allowed the players to “rub shoulders” with the world’s best for a far longer period than is possible in the local Telkom Netball League.
/file/attachments/orphans/TL_2290993_108840.jpg "Karla Pretorius returns to the squad after taking an extended international break from netball. (Photo: Reg Caldecott/Gallo Images)")
“[The international exposure] definitely makes a big impact for us,” said Van Dyk. “The biggest reason for that is because our Telkom Netball League, which we are very thankful for, unfortunately, gets played in power weeks, which only gives us three power weeks.”
“The duration of time they spend preparing, playing and training is significantly different,” she added. “If you look at a player like Elmere van der Berg, she will literally jump off the plane in time for camp and for the Commonwealth Games. It’s more of the duration of the leagues that’s really benefiting us than the league itself.”
The team will assemble for camp on 10 July, which will include closed-door matches against Uganda. Uganda defeated SA in the fifth-place playoffs in both the 2022 Games and 2023 World Cup.
The South African netball team will begin its Commonwealth Games campaign on 25 July against Malawi at 8pm SA time. DM