….South Africa 62–46 Queens
By Edwin Mbewe
NAIROBI-(MaraviPost)-Malawi Queens have missed out on a place in the final of the 2026 Africa Netball Cup after suffering a 62–46 defeat to South Africa’s SPAR Proteas in a semifinal played in Nairobi on Friday, September 25.
MaraviPost watched the thrilling semifinal live on DiscoverSport.com, where the Queens made a strong start and held South Africa to a 14–14 stalemate at the end of the opening quarter.
The Proteas gradually gained control, taking a 29–25 lead into halftime before extending their advantage to 44–35 at the end of the third quarter. South Africa maintained their momentum in the final quarter to complete a 62–46 victory and book their place in the final.
The result means Malawi will now face Namibia in the third-place classification match as they seek to finish the tournament with a bronze medal.
Lwazi admits Queens failed to follow instructions
Speaking after the match, Malawi captain Takondwa Lwazi acknowledged that the Queens failed to execute their game plan consistently, particularly in the final two quarters.
Lwazi said the team performed well during the opening two quarters but would now focus on recovering and preparing for the third-place match.
“We are not discouraged about the loss. However, we have to recover and plan for our final match tomorrow against Namibia,” Lwazi said.
Fuller blames fatigue
Malawi head coach Debbie Fuller said fatigue contributed to the team’s struggles but pointed to positives from the performance.
“We played well in two quarters; however, we failed to calculate our opponents’ movements in the final two quarters. We made numerous changes because I wanted to rotate the girls as I noted fatigue amongst them,” Fuller said.
Fuller stressed the importance of the third-place match.
“Third place is very vital, so we will fight for it,” she said.
Better campaign than 2025
Despite missing out on the final, Malawi’s 2026 campaign represents progress from their performance at the 2025 Africa Netball Cup, which was hosted at the Griffin Saenda Sports Complex in Lilongwe.
The Queens reached the semifinals of the 2025 tournament but lost 46–33 to Uganda before suffering a narrow 48–44 defeat to Zimbabwe in the third-place play-off to finish fourth.
South Africa retained the continental title after defeating Uganda 56–34 in the final.
The 2025 women’s final standings were:
- 1st – South Africa
- 2nd – Uganda
- 3rd – Zimbabwe
- 4th – Malawi
Sydney World Cup qualification
Despite missing out on the 2026 Africa Netball Cup final, Malawi have secured qualification for the 2027 Netball World Cup in Sydney, Australia.
The Nairobi tournament serves as Africa’s qualification pathway for the 2027 World Cup, with Malawi among the teams competing for the continent’s available qualification places.
For the Queens, attention now turns to Namibia and the battle for third place.
The team will be looking to end their Nairobi campaign on a high by securing the bronze medal and carrying the experience into their preparations for the 2027 World Cup.
Leave a Reply