Fiery netball action will be on the menu this Saturday when the North West Flames and Golden Fireballs match forces in the Brutal Fruit Netball Premier League in Bloemfontein.
The North West Flames will do their utmost not to repeat previous years’ semi-final heartbreak and, for once, get the opportunity to play in the final on Sunday.
The Fireballs reached the semi-final spot with a comfortable 68-24 win against the Eastern Cape Aloes last weekend, while the second-on-the-log Flames side earned a rest before this big semi-final clash.

The coach, Elsje Jordaan, has done remarkable things with the Gauteng team and has taken them to their first NPL semi-final. Former Flames player, Nadia Uys-Pienaar, now plies her trade at the Fireballs and it will be interesting to see how she goes up against some of her old teammates.
The Fireballs have been on a roll during this NPL and have only lost two matches, with Deanke Rohde and Talja Venter banging in the goals on regular occasions.
The Flames have also been in red hot form with Renske Stoltz being one of the players of the tournament with her accurate shooting and watertight positional play.
Zandré Erasmus and Maronel Scherman have also been rock solid in defence and their bossing of play in the semi-final will go a long way in deciding the contest.
Summarised, the Flames have the BMT to take the title with numerous NWU-Pukke players in their team who have tasted success in the Varsity Netball tournament under the coach, Dorette Badenhorst. Now, they only need to shift that success to this prestigious tournament.

The Flames captain, Chanté Bester, believes her side has the willpower to go all the way and that the good spirit in the squad has created a tight unit on the court as well. ‘I am very excited for this coming weekend. It is not going to be easy but I believe our team has what it takes to get the win. We play for each other and that makes a huge difference.
‘Our biggest challenge will be to stay relaxed when under pressure and to keep focused on the game,’ she said. Bester added that the team is used to the pressure situations and emphasised the strength in depth of the North West Flames.
‘We set high standards for ourselves, Our coaching team has also played a huge role in the Flames’ success and they know how to get the best out of each player.’
The match between the NW Flames and Gauteng Golden Fireballs will be broadcast live on Supersport 210 at 18:00 on Saturday. The final will start at 12:30 on Sunday.