Mangaung took charge on Tuesday, handing defending champions Tshwane their first defeat of the tournament, as the Free State team remained unbeaten after two days of competition at the Spar National Netball Championships.
In what was perhaps the most anticipated clash of the round-robin stage, Mangaung secured a 50-44 victory over Tshwane.
While they were outplayed in a hard-fought match, stand-in Tshwane coach Sone Mokken recalled last year’s result when Mangaung had beaten Tshwane in the opening round but the Gauteng side had gone on to win the final.
“Last year we won the match that counted,” said Mokken, who was filling in for regular Tshwane coach Jenny van Dyk, sidelined while undergoing surgery.
Mokken remained confident they could bounce back to retain their A-section title.
“It’s a good wake-up call for the players,” she said.
“We made too many mistakes and we will go back and work at improving in the areas where we failed, but I know we can beat this team.”
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