Durban's Finest: Nike 'The Chance'

Six young amateur footballers from Durban were selected in Nike’s ‘The Chance’ football trials held on 23-24 June at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

Over 1 400 aspirant footballers attended the two-day trials and took to the field to try and impress head coaches Tebogo Moloi and Arthur Zwane. The Durban trials marked the last leg of the regional trials which also took place in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Bloemfontein.

The six players selected in Durban are: Kyle Davis, Marlon Whitby, Dini Mpfana, Nkonzo Nkomo, Lorenzo Gordiano and Thamsanqua Nxumalo.

All six finalists will be attending The Chance finals in Johannesburg from 4-8 July at the Nike Football Training Centre, where they will compete for the only three available spots to go to Barcelona, Spain in August.

Moloi and Zwane, who were impressed by the great talent that Durban presented, had a tough time selecting the finalists.

“It was inspiring to see over a thousand boys turn up on day one, which really shows the hunger and determination these players have, and they are very talented. The players demonstrated great skill, and made it challenging for the coaches, but we continued trialing until we found the best boys. They will definitely put up a good fight in the finals in Johannesburg in July,” said Moloi.

“It was also very encouraging to see how many of these players travelled from afar to take a chance in this trial, and we believe that Nike’s The Chance programme has truly unearthed talented players.”

The Chance 2012 is a unique global football talent search that gives young amateur footballers from around the world an opportunity to prove themselves on an elite stage and take their game to the highest level.

The Chance celebrates the hunger of youngsters to be noticed and make a mark in the world of football. South African goalkeeper Reyaad Pieterse, who won a ‘one-in-eight' spot in The Chance 2011 and joined the Nike Academy in the UK, recently signed a professional contract with Ireland-based Shamrock Rovers FC.

Created to support talented youngsters who are not currently in the professional game, ‘The Chance’ will allow the best young footballers to train and play at the leading facilities in world football, showcase their skills in front of elite coaches and mentors, as they develop and improve their talent, with the ultimate aim of getting noticed.

Players from 55 countries around the world will take part in ‘The Chance’ trials in 2012. The best 100 players from these trials, watched by top Nike coaches, will then travel to the global finals in Spain, to be held at FC Barcelona’s famed youth academy. There, they will experience world class facilities, top-notch coaching, and input from nutritionists, psychologists and fitness conditioners as they progress in the programme.

From this group of 16 players, four players will be selected to train and play with the Nike Academy, now in its second year in partnership with the Premier League, based in the United Kingdom. This will form the last leg of the tour. One player will join the Nike Academy 2012/13 full time for two months and play with the team to showcase their talent to professional scouts and coaches.