Reddam House Waterfall celebrates historic triple call-up to SA netball squads

Reddam House Waterfall has netted a historic hat-trick of national call-ups, with three of its young netball stars earning places in South African squads for upcoming international tournaments.

Fifteen-year-olds Nicole Weyers and Imitha Mdaka, along with sixteen-year-old Refentse Scott, have turned seasons of grit, skill and leadership into a moment that will go down in the school’s sporting history.

“Having three South African athletes in one cohort is a first for our school and a ringing endorsement of the depth of our netball programme,” said Quinton Pascoe, executive head of Reddam House Waterfall. “Nicole, Refentse and Imitha are hardworking, passionate and humble – they lead by example on and off the court, and we could not be prouder.”

Director of sport for Reddam House Waterfall College, Reece Prinsloo, concurs, “These athletes lead by example, on and off the court.”

Indoor action netball is played inside a net‑enclosed court where the ball never goes out, so play is faster and rarely interrupted. Although Reddam House Waterfall currently offers only outdoor netball, Nicole and Refentse represented their province in the U23 indoor inter-provincials in Gauteng earlier this year. Both girls then travelled to Cape Town for the U16 indoor inter-provincials, impressing the U19 mixed indoor netball team coach which resulted in an invitation to try out for the SA U19 training squad. From an original field of 80 players, only 20 made the South African U19 mixed squad; the pair will now contest final trials for the Indoor Netball World Cup 2026.

Imitha, meanwhile, earned a call‑up to the national U16 outdoor team and will represent South Africa at the COSSASA Games in Eswatini from August 24 - 28. At the outdoor provincial trials about 280 pupils competed for only 12 places, underlining the scale of her achievement.

Athlete snapshots

• Nicole Weyers has represented Reddam House Waterfall for the past ten years, lining up at goal shooter/goal attack. She is part of the South African U19 mixed indoor squad, has represented Gauteng Indoor since 2023, has earned academic full colours every year since Grade 6, and also starred in this year’s Montrose Night Challenge.
• Imitha Mdaka has excelled at goal defence since joining the College three seasons ago. She has represented Gauteng in both netball and athletics (100 m and 200 m), competed at the South African Championships, and was named Defender of the Tournament at the Montrose Night Challenge.
• Refentse Scott anchors the defensive circle as goalkeeper and has likewise worn Reddam colours for a decade. She toured New Zealand with the South African junior indoor team in 2024, was Player of the Tournament at the 2025 Indoor Inter‑Provincials, participated in the Montrose Night Challenge, earned selection for the South African dance team in 2023, and holds a schools honours blazer for excellence in academics, sport and culture.

Former national indoor player Xolani Nyamanda heads the coaching team that guides Reddam athletes from U9 through to matric. The programme’s comprehensive approach – marrying strength and conditioning, nutrition and sports psychology – is overseen by X‑Factor Netball Development.

“Athletes are encouraged to take ownership,” Nyamanda explained. “These three are first at training, last to leave and constantly rally their team‑mates on WhatsApp. The juniors see that and want to emulate it.”

Next on the calendar

• August 24 to 28 – COSSASA Games, Eswatini (Mdaka)
• September – November 2025 – Gauteng and Tshwane Premier Leagues (Weyers, Scott)
• 2026 – Indoor Netball World Cup, South Africa (final U19 squad to be confirmed)