Early on Sunday 1st August two SJ team set off to Wembley for the NW London Netball Tournament. Spirits were high as SJ had finished champions last time this tournament was held in 2019.
It was the first tournament SJ has taken part in since the pandemic started, so after over 18 months it was great to see our ladies in action. It was made even more special to see our younger players involved too.
The two teams were SJ Red ,captained by Fatma Ali leading our seasoned players, and our new generation netballers in SJ Black captained by Sakina Merali.
The weather looked precarious but a sudden downpour did not dampen the mood, the tournament started up in a round robin match format with SJ Red up against SJ Black in the first match. The younger SJ Blacks pushed hard against SJ Red. Both teams using the first few minutes to get back into action after such a long break from playing due to lockdown. The play excelled from minute to minute, passing, intercepting, exceptional goals and teamwork. The match ending in victory for Red and disappointment for Black.
Both teams went on to win a further match each but sadly neither team qualified for the finals, although SJ Red were a close 3rd place overall.
The sun did shine in the end and there was a great atmosphere all day and some fantastic netball to watch. Where a trophy was not brought home this time both teams left pumped up and SJ Black really showed us that the future of SJ netball is very bright!!
Teams:
SJ Red: Fatma Ali, Samina Govani, Fatemah Dewji-Rajabali, Salma Mirza, Sabera Alloo, Tahera Merali, Tahira Mahdiyya Khaki, Ismat Jiwa-Fazel
SJ Black: Sakina Merali, Aamena Merali, Safiya Bandali, Ameerah Haji, Aasiyah Alloo, Sameera Chagpar, Saman Khaku
