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The Apia Park Netball courts came alive in February for three weeks as staff teams from the various companies come out to play. Initiated by the Samoa Sports Federation and well received by many organisations, the event promoted health in the workplace and the opportunity for some team building.
The line up for this year included a total of 15 teams sponsored by different companies. The Business Mixed Netball Tournament was sponsored by Reckitt & Benckiser, who is also a major sponsor of the club tournament in March sanctioned by the Samoa Netball Association (SNA).
Most of the competitors for the Business Netball Tournament 2002 were men. Each team was made up of 15 players and fielded 7 (4 women and 3 men) at any one time.
"Netball is played mainly by women, but in Samoa, netball is one of the popular games that guys are involved in", said Uti Eteuati, one of the organisers for the Business Mixed Netball Tournament.
"It
is not so much a matter of winning, but rather participating", added Eteuati.
Play
started at 5 o'clock on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Teams were divided
into three pools, with two rounds that lasted 10 minutes each.
At the end of the tournament, Samoa College Stars became the worthy
winner for 2002 (Sam Co Stars 16 - 13 Colonial Mutual). Colonial Mutual
Samoa played a tough match in the final, after defeating a strong
Women's Affairs Department team in the semi-finals (Colonial Samoa 15 - 10 Women's Affairs).
The game was played at a fast pace with flashes of flair and a free-flowing ball down from the defence to the shooting end.
The Business Mixed Netball Tournament was a good build up for the Samoa Netball Association Competition in March. The 2001 Champions SMOGA (St Mary's Old Girls Association) looked set to continue their 8 year winning streak as Holders of both the Club Championship Title and the ANZ Bank Shield.
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