The Sunday Mail
Brighton Zhawi
DURING the week she is busy trying to save lives, following in the footsteps of the iconic Florence Nightingale.
However, at weekends Christine Kadandara specialises in suffocating life out of the opposition as she does business for City of Harare in the Netball Super League.
On the pitch the 26-year old Kadandara looks worlds apart from the compassionate and always smiling nurse who is a darling of many a patient at Harare Central Hospital.
The Sunshine Girls’ goal defender takes no prisoners and is the pillar upon which the newly promoted municipal side is building their league campaign upon.
“I love nursing and netball in equal measure,” said the City of Harare star woman.
The Sunshine Girls have had an impressive start to the season with the highlight being a recent 35-25 humbling of a Correctional Queens outfit that had not lost a match in nearly two years.
In that match Kadandara was solid, solid as a rock. “I played my heart out, I can safely say it’s my best performance ever since I started playing netball,” she said.
“That win over Correctional Queens was a massive confidence booster. After handing the Queens their first defeat in nearly two years we feel we have it in us to go all the way and win the Super League title.
“We know that after beating the Queens all the other teams will start taking us seriously and raising their games when they meet us but we are ready for that challenge.
Kadandara revealed coach Ropafadzo Mutsauki’s game plan when City of Harare faced Queens.
“We came up with a plan that ensured that we stood tall to tall with them in every part of the field. The coach told us to be confident and not to allow Queens to dominate.
“I was instructed not to stand in front of their goal shooter but that was changed a few minutes into the game after it was realised that I could jump much higher than she could,” she said.
If it were not for Mutsauki the vastly talented Kadandara would have been lost to netball.
“I hail from Zvimba and played netball at Mupumbu Primary and Matoranhembe High Schools but never considered playing the sport competitively after school.
“However, one day I was playing netball for fun at Budiriro 1 Shopping Centre when coach Mutsauki noticed me and asked me to come to a City of Harare training session and see if I could enjoy it as well. “That was in 2010 and I have never looked back since then. I left briefly to play for Beta Holdings but now I am back home and enjoying my game.
“I am confident if I continue playing well I will get selected for the national team,” she said.
