Mary Waya


Mary Waya is a Malawian netball player and coach. Waya started playing international-level netball at age 14, and has played in more than 200 representative matches for Malawi. During that time she has competed in two World Netball Championships, three Commonwealth Games, and two World Netball Series.
Waya came to international prominence during the 2007 World Championships in New Zealand, where the Malawian national team finished 5th, their highest ever placing. She announced her retirement after the tournament, but returned to international competition the following year. She remains the national team's most high-profile player, and was chosen as the flag bearer for the Malawi team at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi.
After the 2010 World Series in Liverpool, Waya again announced her retirement from international netball, along with Queens veterans Peace Chawinga-Kalua and Esther Nkhoma. She turned her attention to coaching, and later that year stepped into the role of head coach of the Malawi U-20 netball team.
The Netball Association of Malawi held negotiations with the three retired players to try to convince them to return to the Queens. On 15 June 2011, the NAM announced that Waya had agreed to return to the national team, along with Queens veterans Esther Nkhoma and Sylvia Mtetemela; Peace Chawinga-Kalua had earlier signed as assistant coach for the team. Media reports in Malawi indicated that the return of the three veterans players had caused major tension in the Queens squad, which led Waya to withdraw early from the squad's training camp.
In domestic netball, Waya plays for the MTL Queens. She was married to the late Bullets FC player Fumu Ng'oma, before they later separated; Waya and Ng'oma have two sons.
She was named as the coach of the Tanzania National Netball Team in 2012.