Coach and owner of Afrocats Lions Dimitri Bittler said despite their pre-season triumph of the MTC Fast Five Cup, he believes the team have got a lot to do to reach the needed fitness level. 

The newly-promoted outfit was on Saturday crowned the winners of the MTC Netball Namibia Premier League (NNPL) Fast Five pre-season tournament, which took place at the United netball courts in Windhoek. 

The former Khomas Netball champions reached the finals after beating Namibia Navy 27-25 in the semi-finals. 

Meanwhile, Mighty Gunners, who were in the final against the former champions, made their way to the final after edging out Tigers 18-15.

In the final, Afrocats managed to secure a hard-fought 12-11 victory against Gunners to become the first-ever champions of the MTC NNPL Fast-Five Cup. 

Reflecting on the victory, coach Bittler said he was pleased with the results and the overall performance of his players. 

He added that the tournament was not easy as every team on the court gave it their best in search of silverware. 

“I am super-excited for the girls on what they did. It was a tremendous job, and they made us proud. Although it was not a walk in the park, we managed to start off the season as pre-season tournament winners, which I believe will boost our confidence as a team,” he said. 

Bittler added that the tournament helped them familiarise themselves with the kind of opponents they would be facing in the premier league, as well trying to find solutions to their mistakes, which need to be rectified ahead of the new season. 

“The tournament also played a huge role in terms of preparations and readiness. We also got to see how our opponents in the premier league play. I believe we still have a lot of areas to work on, despite winning the season opener,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mighty Gunners’ coach Hilma Dawid said the competition was a great experience as it helped in terms of preparation.

“The Fast Five tournament was a great experience, and I believe not only for my players, but for the whole MTC NNPL players. We are very grateful to MTC for sponsoring it. There wasn’t enough time to have full preparations, but with the little time we had, we put in place all that we had and used it to our advantage as we took second place.” 

- mkambukwe@nepc.com.na