It went all the way down to the wire. Cape Town’s attacker Sigi Burger scored in the dying seconds for the home side to overcome Tshwane 56-55 and be crowned this year’s champions of the Spar National Netball Championships at Stellenberg High School in Cape Town. In what turned out to be a ding-dong four quarters, Cape Town held their nerve during the dramatic closing stages and prevented the match from going to extra time in front of their own supporters. It was a heartbreaking end for Tshwane as they tasted their first defeat in the last match of the tournament after dominating proceedings from the opening day. After the game, former Netball Proteas attacker Burger said there was pressure to score the match-winning point, but experience helped her handle the big moment. “I didn’t know [that there were only about 10 seconds remaining on the clock]. In those situations, there is a lot of pressure on your hands, but it is about being slightly older and mature to be able to handle those big moments,” she said. “It is about trusting your training and the environment around you and knowing it is just another shot.”Her coach, Freda Kemp, said Cape Town were rewarded for their hard work behind the scenes and the victory makes up for the disappointment of last year, when they lost in the final. “We lost the final by one point last year. We really worked hard to make sure players got everything they needed to perform at the highest level. We can be proud of what we achieved today. The girls have put in so much work behind the scenes to prepare for this event.— Bongi Msomi, Johannesburg U-21 coach “We have worked hard over the past three years. I said to the federation we needed to start attracting sponsorships so we are able to develop and take netball forward,” said Kemp. In the earlier U21 final, Johannesburg proved too strong for Tshwane by beating them 53-38 for their third title in succession and another stamp of approval for coach Bongi Msomi. Msomi, the former Netball Proteas captain, praised her players for the professional conduct on and off the pitch. “We are lucky to have enough numbers to get out there and perform at this level. The girls have put in so much work behind the scenes to prepare for this event,” she said. “Coming into the tournament, we made them come up with their own ideas of what they want to achieve ... to make them accountable. I cannot question how they have been looking, both on and off the court.”