Vezukhono
Secondary School was one of the schools that played. Although they did not advance to the next
round of the competition, their coach, Tim Borolo, said the main benefit of
playing in the competition is to help kids overcome social and life difficulties.
“Some of the learners in the school find it difficult to fit in as they are
either orphans or have no parents and live with other family members,” he said.
“They
lack confidence and are loners. We use soccer to help them fit in and feel
normal and accepted. Participation in the tournament lessens the stresses of
life and builds confidence and gives them a feeling of belonging which impacts
on their school work.”
Borolo
gives the example of Lindo and Mzwandile Calaza, who are cousins and who attend
the school. They have suffered many a hardship in their short 18 years. They
come from Kwamashu in KwaZulu-Natal and were identified by a football academy
in Pretoria after impressing at trials last year. At the end of the first year
their parents could not afford the school fees so they had to pull out.
The
cousins now attend Vezukhono and live in a house without adult supervision.
Every month their parents send money to the school and the school helps the
boys administer it so that they can pay for living expenses.
The
cousins believe that education is important and they work hard so that they can
eventually study at university. Lindo wants to study a BCOM accounting through
UNISA and Mzwandile wants to study BCOM Sports Management at WITS.
“The
Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup was founded on the principle of giving Under-19
players a platform to put on their best performance to be identified by coaches
and placed in programmes where they can mature into professionals,” said Frank
Louw, Sanlam Sponsorship Manager. “But
not all players at this level will become professionals and for them we want to
endorse education and help them become financially literate.”
