Netball South Africa Challenge
Current season, competition or edition: 2021 SPAR Challenge Series | |
| Sport | Netball |
|---|---|
| First season | 2012 |
| No. of teams | 3-6 |
| Most recent champion(s) |  South Africa (5th title) |
| Most titles | South Africa (5 titles) |
The Netball South Africa Challenge (previously known as the Diamond Challenge and currently known as the SPAR Challenge) is an international netball tournament held close to biannually in South Africa and organised by the country's governing body for the sport, Netball South Africa. The challenge is contested by the South African national team and up to five other African nations. The inaugural tournament was held in 2012 and it has been contested in most subsequent years.
History[edit]
The tournament has been held in different South African cities since it began in 2012. The South African team has won each of the tournaments on offer. The tournament did not take place in 2014 and 2017.[1][2] Despite South Africa's dominance at the tournament, head coach Norma Plummer has stated "we respect all teams we play in the Diamond Challenge and we [work] hard to win these games confidently".[3] In the 2016 and 2018 editions, an invitational second-tier side, known as the South African Presidents XII, has participated with a view to developing the "next tier" of South African netballers with international experience.[3]
Results[edit]
| Year | City | Opponent(s) | Results | Winner | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Pretoria |  Botswana Malawi Zambia
|
3rd/4th: BOT 45-36 ZAM Final: RSA 47-43 MAW |
South Africa | [4] |
| 2013 | Port Elizabeth | Zambia Zimbabwe
|
Final: SA 59-45 ZIM | South Africa | [5] |
| 2015 | Margate | Malawi Uganda Zambia
|
3rd/4th: UGA 59-34 ZAM Final: RSA 40-35 MAW |
South Africa | [6] |
| 2016 | Durban | SAP XII Uganda Zimbabwe
|
3rd/4th: UGA 54-54 SAP XII Final: RSA 68-34 ZIM |
South Africa | [7] |
| 2018 | Seshego | Botswana Namibia SAP XII Zambia Zimbabwe
|
1st: South Africa / 2nd: Zambia 3rd: Zimbabwe / 4th: Botswana 5th: Namibia / 6th: Presidents XII[nb 1] |
South Africa | [8] [9] |
| 2021 | Cape Town | Uganda Namibia SAP XII SA U21
|
TBC | TBC | N/A |
See also[edit]
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Spar Proteas aim to edge out Malawi at challenge". CityPress. 14 June 2015.
- ^ "Proteas year in review". Netball Scoop. 24 December 2017.
- ^ a b "South African netball sides named ahead of Diamond Challenge". Netball South Africa. 24 November 2018.
- ^ Luke Williams (20 August 2012). "Weakened South Africa triumphs over Malawi in Diamond Netball Challenge". Netball Scoop.
- ^ "2013 Diamond Challenge (SA/Zambia/Zimbabwe)". Netball Scoop Forum Archive. 28 October 2013.
- ^ "Plummer's Proteas shine to win Diamond Challenge". South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee. 21 June 2015.
- ^ "2016 Diamond Challenge". Netball Scoop Forum Archive. 2 October 2016.
- ^ "2018 Diamond Challenge in South Africa (27 Nov-1 Dec)". Netball Scoop Forum. 5 November 2018.
- ^ "SPAR PROTEAS WRAP UP DIAMOND CHALLENGE TITLE DEFENCE". South Africa Netball. Facebook. 1 December 2018.
External links[edit]
- 2018 Tournament – Overview of the 2018 Challenge