Malawi Under-21 national netball team will be revived ahead of its participation in the World Youth Championship qualifying tournament set for Botswana next year.
Netball Association of Malawi (Nam) general secretary, Carol Bapu, said they were drawing up a budget for the youth Queens’s participation in the qualifiers.
“Our technical members are also busy on the ground spotting talent in the on-going Presidential Cup. We want to select the best talent so that we should build a strong team,” she said.
Bapu said it was necessary for the developmental team to participate in the qualifying tournament to gain exposure.
“We also need a buffer where we can easily tap talent from and draft it into the main team,” she said.
The Nam GS also highlighted the significance of the youth championship as it has helped unearth several players such as Mwawi Kumwenda.
The New Zealand-based shooter was spotted while playing for Malawi youth team.
“We should remember that it was in 2009 where the likes of Sindie Simtowe, Towera Vinkhumbo-Nyirenda and Mwawi Kumwenda came to the fore. In fact, Mwawi was spotted in Cook Islands during those games,” she said.
Malawi youth team last participated in the world championship in 2009 when it was held at Rarotonga in Cook Islands. Australia Under-21 won the championship, whereas Malawi finished fifth.
However, the youth Queens missed the championship in 2013 when it was staged in Glasgow, Scotland where New Zealand emerged champions.
The next World championship would be held in 2017 in Botswana.
International Netball Federation has deliberately scheduled the qualifying tournament for Africa teams in Botswana to check whether the courts are good enough for the ultimate World Youth Championship in 2017.
“Depending on the assessment, they (International Netball Federation) will confirm whether the World Youth Championship will be staged in Botswana,”
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