The Protea netball team will travel to Belfast, Northern Ireland, this week for the European netball championships, taking place from Thursday to Sunday.

Netball SA president Mimi Mthethwa said the tournament was a wonderful opportunity for the coach and players to put into practice what they learnt from former Australian coach Norma Plummer, who spent time with the national squad earlier this year.

"She [Plummer] suggested new ideas and a different approach, and the players will be able to try these out."

Other teams taking part in the European Championships are England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Trinidad and Tobago.

National coach Bennie Saayman said that though South Africa were the second-ranked team in the tournament, the Proteas could not afford to be complacent. "There is no team taking part that we can take for granted - every match will be a challenge. And, of course, the biggest challenge will be England, who are ranked third in the world."

Saayman said she was very happy with the make-up of the team, which includes three new caps - Mari-Lena Joubert, Rochelle Lawson and Lauren-Lee Christians - as well as a number of experienced players.

Two senior players, Bongiwe Msomi and Zanele Mdodana, who were initially in the squad, will not be making the trip to Ireland and have been replaced by Izette Lubbe and Shadine van der Merwe.