The 2020 edition of the hugely popular tournament will be contested by 12 teams from the nine provinces in South Africa, over a period of seven weeks.

In the opening match, the defending champions, the Gauteng Jaguars, will face the North West Flames at 9:00.

At 11:00 it is the turn of the hosts and three-time champions, the Free State Crinums.

The local ladies will be in action against the KZN Kingdom Stars.

Captain of the Crinums, Lefebre Rademan, told OFM Sport that they expect a tough opener, but the excitement to play is the overriding factor.

“We are so excited to get back on the court. At eleven o’clock we are playing against the Kingdom Stars.

“We know what to expect, by the same token, we also don’t know what to expect. We know that they are physical, they are also a good team and they are hardworking players.

“We as the Free State Crinums are really excited to get out on the court and just want to play quality netball and give everything that we’ve got.

“We really worked hard during the lockdown and are blessed to have the Telkom Netball League.”

First two days fixtures:

14 October

9:00 - Gauteng Jaguars vs North West Flames

11:00 - KZN Kingdom Stars vs Free State Crinums

13:00 - Eastern Cape Aloes vs Tornados

15:00 - WC Southern Stings vs Gauteng Golden Fireballs

17:00 - Kingdom Queens vs Limpopo Baobabs

15 October 

8:00 - Gauteng Golden Fireballs vs Free State Crinums

10:00 - Northern Cape Diamonds vs Mpumalanga Sunbirds

12:00 - WC Southern Stings vs North West Flames

15:00 - KZN Kingdom Stars vs Gauteng Jaguars

17:00 - Limpopo Baobabs vs Eastern Cape Aloes

@MorganPiek OFM Sport