IT was a great night for African players at the Vitality Netball Superleague (VNSL) Awards night with Mary Cholhok and Towera Vinhkhumbo scooping top prizes.
VNSL Awards is an annual event used to commemorate the league’s best performers from the previous season who are honoured at every Grand Final.
Ugandan Cholhok won the Gilbert Goalden Shot after being consistently top of the Gilbert Top Scorer leaderboard throughout the 2021 campaign.
At the end of the regular season, the Loughborough Lightning player finished on 772 goals with a shot success rate of 88 per cent.
This was the goal shooter’s best scoring season to date, and she finished 122 clear of second-placed Malawian Joyce Mvula of Manchester Thunder. It is the second season in succession that Cholhok has won the award.
One of the biggest honours that can be bestowed upon a player is when one gets the vote of confidence from fellow players.
Malawian Towera Vinhkhumbo, who plays for Scotland based Strathclyde Sirens, was voted the Players’ Player of the Season.
Vinkhumbo, who made her VNSL debut in 2020, was the rock on which Strathclyde Sirens success was built in the 2021 season, leading the league with 60 intercepts and making 93 turnovers.
She was not far off from the leaderboard on deflections, ending up on the fifth position with 56 at the end of the regular campaign.
Mvula, who won Sky Sports Fans’ Player of the Season in 2019, could only manage the fourth spot as Leeds Rhinos player Donnell Wallam won the Award, Eleanor Cardwell of Manchester Thunder and Vinkhumbo coming second and third respectively.
The biggest individual award of the night, Vitality Player of the Season was won by Loughborough Lightning defender Beth Cobden.
African duo of Vinkhumbo and Mvula came third and fourth, respectively.
Teams pick the All Star Seven team of the 2021 season; each submits a player’s name that they think is the best player for each position. They are not allowed to pick players from their team. The players in each position who received the most votes will make up the All Star VII.
Vinkhumbo is the only African who made it on the All Star VII team of the season.
All Star VII 2021:
Winners: GK: Towera Vinkhumbo (Strathclyde Sirens), GD: Layla Guscoth (Team Bath Netball), WD: Laura Malcolm (Manchester Thunder), C: Serena Guthrie (Team Bath Netball), WA: Brie Grierson (Leeds Rhinos Netball), GA: Eleanor Cardwell (Manchester Thunder), GS: Kim Borger (Team Bath Netball).
