Netball: Shakers put gag on their star SA shooter

By RICHARD BOOCK

Wellington have slapped a media ban on star South African netballer Irene Van Dyk in response to the on-going debate over international eligibility rules.

But before the ban took effect, Van Dyk said: "I came to New Zealand for the quality of life, for my family and to play for the Shakers.

"There was no thought of me playing for New Zealand when I arrived here. It was only when Christie [husband] and I decided we would stay that I said I would be available for the Silver Ferns.

"I hope to be here for the rest of my life, and while I can still play netball, which is my passion, I would like to play at the highest possible level.

"If we were only going to be here for a short period then it would not have arisen."

Since making herself available for the Silver Ferns a fortnight ago, the Capital Shakers' goal-shoot and former South African captain has been in the news so often that she apparently needs to be protected from the distractions of the media.

Wellington president Kathy Doyle claimed yesterday that the demands of the Fourth Estate were affecting the performance of the world-class goal-shoot, who needed room to concentrate on her school teaching, her family and her Coca Cola Cup campaign with the Shakers.

However, just as Doyle was announcing the sanctions, Van Dyk's English team-mate Helen Lonsdale added more fuel to fire by attacking those who have questioned the International Netball Federation's eligibility rule, which simply restricts players from representing more than one country in a calendar year.

Lonsdale, who runs in the Shakers' centre-court, said the row over Van Dyk's availability ignored previous incidents of dual representation, and suggested opponents of the move were galvanised by the South African's high profile, rather than the rights and wrongs of the eligibility issue.

Of the legions of New Zealanders who have represented a Pacific Island nation for example, the late Leilani Read managed to play for Samoa one year, New Zealand the next and Samoa again the following year, while former New Zealand representatives Rita Fatialofa (Samoa), Margie Matenga (Cook Islands) and Ana Noovao (Cook Islands) all shifted their national allegiances.

"I'm quite disappointed in the criticism Irene's come under because she is doing absolutely loads for New Zealand netball - she has increased the game's profile," Lonsdale said.

She believed the international rule could be fine-tuned to incorporate a one-year stand-down period, but had no objections to the South African's decision to make herself available for New Zealand this year.

"Irene moved away from South Africa because she wants a good place to bring up her young daughter Bianca. She's going to apply for residency and citizenship here, so she should be allowed to play."

Meanwhile, the league's goal-shooting statistics have not exactly backed Doyle's concerns over her trump card, with Van Dyk leading all scorers with a 93 per cent success rate after nailing 287 of her 310 attempts.

Chasing Van Dyk is Jamaican star Elaine Davis, who is slotting 90 per cent for the Auckland Diamonds, with Silver Fern Donna Loffhagen hovering at 88 per cent, followed by Tania Nicholson (85 per cent), Angela Maoate (82 per cent) and Belinda Colling (81 per cent).