St. Vincent and the Grenadines Vincy Jewels secured their second place finish in the 2023 ECCB International Netball Series, with a 45 – 32 defeat of neighbours Saint Lucia at the YMCA Sports Complex in St. John’s, Antigua.
Saint Lucia led at the end of the first quarter 10 – 7, but the Vincy Jewels took the lead at the end of the second quarter 22 – 19, and did not relinquish that lead in the subsequent quarters 31 – 25, 45 – 32.
Shooting for the Vincy Jewels Joseann Antoine netted 32 goals from her 40 attempts, and Shellisa Davis 13 from 18 attempts.
For Saint Lucia, Jo-Ann Anderson scored 4 from 5 attempts, Melika Destand 19 from 29, and Jacqueline Remy 9 from 17 attempts.
Meanwhile in a post-match interview, Vincy Jewels captain Kaywanna Charles, called for changes to the tournament’s scheduling for the protection of the players, and that the presidents of the various national netball associations to meet more often in a face-to-face setting aimed at the continued development of the sport.
Despite the many challenges teams faced, Charles is of the firm belief that netball do have a future in the Caribbean, but the well-being of the players must be the number one priority going forward. She added that the team remained focused all along, and the one goal loss to Grenada is still a hard pill to swallow as this cost the Vincy Jewels the title.
