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15 September 2021 | Story Jóhann Thormählen | Photo Charl Devenish
The University of the Free State (UFS) netball team was honoured by UFS management at a special celebration. The side won a fourth Varsity Netball title and the UFS has now been champion in 2013, 2014, 2018 and 2021.

Set goals for yourself, commit to it, and give everything to achieve them.

According to Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State (UFS), this is what the UFS netball team did and why it is an example for the Kovsie community.

He celebrated the team’s achievement of winning Varsity Netball for a record fourth time and extending the run of the UFS as the most successful team in the tournament.

The Kovsies convincingly beat Maties 55-39 in the final to be crowned champions. It was the biggest victory margin in a final, and they did it after losing to Maties (46-54) in the first round.

Prof Petersen and his management group honoured Burta de Kock, the UFS Head Coach, and her team during a special celebration on 13 September 2021.

Working as an outfit

He said the side’s determination is a lesson to others.

“Once you have decided that these are my objectives and you commit yourself to achieving them, that is all you focus on.”

“It will always be possible if you put everything in and you showed it. Thank you for doing this.”

He praised the team for building the UFS brand. 

“You really work as an outfit. What I saw of the players was a right attitude when they play the game.”

Everything made easy

Sikholiwe (Sne) Mdletshe, the UFS captain, thanked her team’s management, the UFS, and its lecturers.

“We really want to thank the university for putting so much into us. It gives us a lot of resources.

“Some tests had to be written while we were in the bubble and our lecturers made that easy for us.”

She said the players never take the effort for granted. “The UFS makes everything easy to go out there and play netball – the sport we have been playing since we were little kids.”

DB Prinsloo, Director of KovsieSport, is immensely proud of the team.

“We even lost one of our best players in the first match, Chanel Vrey, due to injury. We have to take off our hats to the Kovsie netball team.”


News Archive

Department of Education prescribes student’s novel to schools
2015-11-03


Ntshala Mahasa: The young storyteller

Three years ago Ntshala Mahase was an ordinary high school learner studying texts prescribed by the Department of Education. Now, other learners will be reading his brainchild, Life out of the Ordinary.

The third-year LLB student at the University of the Free State (UFS) officially launched his debut novel in July 2015 at the Bloemfontein Campus. Three months later, the work of fiction has reached a milestone of note. The novel has been selected as one of 12 books from young and emerging writers to form part of the Library and Information Association of South Africa’s (LIASA) Young Writers Programme.

LIASA is the regulatory body for South African public, school, and university libraries. Ntshala’s literary contribution is to be distributed to different school libraries, as per decision of the Western Cape and Gauteng Departments of Education.

About the book

The book narrates the transformational journey of a privileged suburban school boy who one day coincidently exposes himself to the harsh realities of an impoverished South African community. Tom then decides to make a difference and assist those who are less privileged. His experience out of his ordinary and secured Hyde Park life shakes him to such an extent that he falls into emotional anxiety and depression.

One in a thousand

Out of more than 200 entries, Life out of the Ordinary emerged as the only entry from outside the borders of the two provinces to make a set of 1 000 books recommended by LIASA to be prescribed by public schools as of 2016.

Ntshala was taken aback by the enthusiastic reception which his story attracted. “I am greatly humbled.This means it will rub shoulders with books by great South African authors like Niq Mhlongo, Zukiswa Wanner, Thando Mgqolozana, Zakes Mda and the likes,” he said. He is currently authoring his second novel.

 

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