13 Oct 2025

Botswana Netball Association (BONA) has brought in a top African coach, Martha Mosoahle-Samm, to elevate the sport to international standards.

Recognising that the game of netball had evolved and required high-level expertise to compete with other nations, BONA has hired Mosoahle-Samm, who holds a Level 4 qualification, to take charge.

Such a move addresses the current situation where Botswana has no local coach who has acquired the required Level 3 qualification. As such, one of Mosoahle-Samm’s primary mandates is to groom and capacitate local coaches, many of whom currently possess only Level 1 qualifications.

In line with this, BONA recently hosted a skills and knowledge workshop for team managers, coaches, match and technical officials at the Institute of Health Sciences in Gaborone.

During the coaches’ session, Mosoahle-Samm outlined her strategy for developing both players and coaches, which would include introducing video analysis for netball in Botswana.

She stressed that coaches should make it a habit to watch clips because that would assist them to rectify player mistakes and ultimately help the players to improve.

She indicated that for coaches to be effective, players must be able to listen, implement and execute their plans. She noted that how coaches gave information was also crucial, as players could get confused by coaches who talked endlessly.

“Coaches must give players content so they can go on court and implement what they were instructed to do,” she said.

Mosoahle-Samm further told coaches that there was a difference between a coach and an umpire. She cautioned coaches against using a whistle, saying ‘if you are that coach, you are a bad coach. A coach who uses a whistle has essentially turned into an umpire and blurred the roles’. 

She also highlighted the importance of establishing a database of coaches for Botswana. That, she said, would be essential in creating an effective succession plan for the sport.

She also said coaching the Botswana national team was an enjoyable experience because the players were respectable. However, she indicated that while some were challenging due to the high level of participation, they were not challenging her enough because of that respect.

“I want to be challenged, that’s what makes a good coach,” she said, adding her desire was for players to engage more actively and challenge her strategies as they worked toward higher levels of competition. ENDS