#ForYOUTH: Meet Nathaly
Meet Nathaly Septmeber - Netball Coach
Nathaly September was born and raised in the Cape Winelands City of Paarl. As a young woman, she always had a keen interest in sports. As soon as she started school at Groenheuwel Primary, she was immediately drawn to it and excelled at various sporting codes. But when she matriculated in 2011, she felt her life had seemingly come to a standstill, with little clue on what would come next. That’s when she discovered DCAS. After applying to the Mass participation; Opportunity and access; Development and growth (MOD) Programme, she was accepted, and from there, she would gain a new lease on life.
That very same year, she started working within the MOD Programme as an assistant coach at the very school where her love for sport started; Groeheuwel Primary. Nathaly’s coaching career would soon take off with immense promise. In just the first few years of her coaching career, she won the u/13 national basketball championship, her greatest achievement as a coach at the time. Many more feats like this would soon follow.
Growing up, Nathaly was very shy, but as a coach, the MOD programme helped her build her confidence and helped her come out of her shell. The programme equipped her with the necessary tools to help her evolve as a person and as a coach. It also gave her insight as to how to navigate and deal with different personalities from different backgrounds.
“As a coach, you must make you voice heard, share your opinions, your stories, and you must be able to listen to others. This programme has helped me to do just that, and hasn’t just nurtured my career growth, but also my personal growth. At the end of the day, I work with so many different kids from so many different backgrounds, so one of the strengths the programme has helped me hone is to know when and how to use that voice in the correct tone.”
Since she started, there’ve been many obstacles that have stood in her path. But having been able to coach various sporting codes thanks to the MOD programme, she’s developed her ability to help the children she coaches identify their strengths and weaknesses. And in turn, help them channel their strengths into the right direction.“Sometimes, kids will come to me and say that they think they want to try out basketball, for example. But after spending some time with them, they realise that they’re much better at netball, for example. So, helping them discover their strengths is a very satisfying part of my job”.
Seeing her students achieve the results of her efforts she puts is what drives her to continue to do what she does. Since she’s started coaching, Groenheuwel have been able to compete at the highest level against schools from all around the province.
One of her main focal points has been to inspire kids to become role models to others and not become products of their environments. “When the other kids see kids from their school achieve, it inspires them to do more and make more of themselves. One of the most amazing things about my job is the fact that you can literally take a kid out of their environment and give them an opportunity to make something of themselves. And most of the time, they’ll rise to the challenge”.
Having travelled all over the province, Nathaly has gained invaluable experience as a coach by meeting different coaches and hearing them share their trials and triumphs. It’s helped her understand that no matter where you come from, everyone has challenges to overcome. For her, it’s about how you choose to deal with it that will give you your desired result.
“Teamwork has been an integral part of my success. For me, it’s always been about how you treat your peers. If you treat your peers and the kids you coach with respect, they’ll respect you for that and soon, you’ll see them become completely different human beings. When you lead by example, they embrace and adopt those leadership qualities”.
Thanks to the MOD programme, Nathaly has been able to make a positive impact on her community by uplifting the youth and giving them opportunities they never had before. “Some of these kids have never even been outside Cape Town before. But my job has given me the opportunity to expose them to a whole different world that awaits them, and to what everybody else is doing
Above and beyond coaching at her ex-primary school, Nathaly now coaches at Stellenbosch University, and the Western Cape mountaineers’ team which takes up a lot of her time.
“The MOD programme has helped me unlock potential I never knew I had and empowered me to a point where I can now impart knowledge onto others. I feel like at this point in my life, I can now go on and to start a new chapter in my own life and continue to further my career growth”.