By Jonk wa Mashamba
Editor-In-Chief
news@alexreporter.co.za
In 2015 Queen Pheladi Malaka got the shock of her life she she was told that she will never play nor walk properly after she got injured while playing for her school.
But the 24-year-old originally from Limpopo Jane Furse, had two options: be resilient or still complain about the injuries and end up useless with brains!
“I couldn’t play nor walk properly till today. My heart was/is very painful because I was told that I will never play netball ever.”
She said that she decided to set up a team because she couldn’t play. “I thought I would feel better when seeing other girls showcasing their talents.
“I started this netball team because I love netball and I wanted to take out unemployed youth out of the streets whilst they’re still job hunting,” Pheladie says. In 2015 I got injured while I was at the netball match,” she said.
It was at this moment that she founded the Alex Panthers netball club in July 2020 during lockdown.
Her immediate goal is to see women and men from her township playing for the Spar Proteas and SA Male team.
“My wish is to get sponsors as we’re suffering when it comes to transport when we have to go to the tournaments,” says a dedicated woman established a male team last year
“This is the first male netball team in Alexandra,” she says.
Asked if she ever got recognition for her great talent, she said: “I only got an award in primary. Then high school netball was not taken that seriously.”
She didn’t have a model that inspired her then because netball had not been taken seriously for a long time. But she is now inspired by Bongiwe Msomi.
“It was an honor to get a visit from SA Netball Team Captain, Bongiwe Msomi,” she says.
She advises the youths to be persistent, have a room to experience new things and also to step out of their comfort zone so that they can see how capable they are..
“Never be afraid to try because you never know the amount of capabilities you carry.”
She is appealing for donors to sponsor her to sustain her teams.
Contact her on 064 605 2292
