Stakes were high for Zanele Mdodana as Stellies netball coach

Before Stellenbosch University head netball coach Zanele Mdodana took her team all the way to the University Sport South Africa 2019 final – for the first time in 18 years – she had to win a battle off the court with her players and managers.

Facing a backlash from players who insisted on speaking Afrikaans and managers who did not want to let go of their historical responsibilities, Mdodana, 35, had to either adapt or throw in the towel.

But the Port Elizabeth-born former Proteas netball captain faced it head on and proved her detractors wrong.

“The stakes were high and expectations were high.

“I was asked if I can actually do this job because sports at Maties is a big deal and it’s all about excellence,” she said.

“A lot of pressure was on me. Being black and coming to a very Afrikaans environment, I was dealing with white students on a regular basis.”

Mdodana, who was appointed the first black head coach at the University of Stellenbosch in 2017, said she had prepared to move to an Afrikaans-centred town and be confronted by students who were sensitive about their language.

“They had to look at me and not see a black person that they cannot relate to – they needed to see a coach.

“They needed to see someone that they can listen to and adhere to instructions.

“There were many battles that I had to win before actually winning on court.

“Going to Stellenbosch was a completely different ball game.,” she said.

“The town is a little country on its own [and] they have their perceptions about black people.”

Mdodana said one of the first things she did was take the players to a nearby township, Khayamnandi, in an attempt to expose them to the realities of South Africa.

“Our country is not about wine farms and mountains and expensive food and restaurants; there are people who are living in areas where raw sewage flows in the streets and kids are playing there, and that is the reality.

“My goal was to change their lives and open them up to things that exist in our country,” Mdodana said.

Before heading to Stellenbosch, she was captain of the Proteas who, during her tenure, broke the team’s 12-year losing streak against England.

Mdodana later established her Net-Basic netball clinics where she trains youngsters who would otherwise not get specialised training to hone their skills.

The idea came after Mdodana realised that she needed at least three years to train girls to play basic netball.

“I have always believed that a lot of the talent when it comes to netball comes from the Eastern Cape.

“Looking at the way they played I realised that they did not know the basics of netball,” she said.

The clinics she hosts twice a year in the metro are open to girls from across the Bay between the ages of 10 and 16.

The next clinic will be held later this year.