On
Saturday six Free State regional winners will be taking out step further on the
road to fulfilling their dreams of going to London in September to participate
in the Danone Nations Cup World Finals. The Free State provincial final will
take place at the Clive Solomon Stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday April
13. The winner will go on to represent
the province in the National Finals with the ultimate winner packing for
London.
One
of the schools participating on Saturday is Tlong - Kganyeng Primary School.
This is the fourth year they are playing in the competition finishing second at
the provincial finals in both 2011 and 2012 and are hoping to go one better
this year. According to Ramoshodi Ishmael Maleka, their team manager, the boys
are in good shape and have been training twice a day during the Easter
holidays.
He
singles out his captain and striker, Lebogang Litabe, and midfielder Teboho
Mokgotsi as key players in the team. “We have been grooming them from the age
of seven and they are both very dedicated.”
Maleka
believes the trip to London will give the kids an experience that will change
their lives. He has heard that kids from
Schools that have been overseas come home with more confidence and drive which
reflects in their school work as well.
“If we are the school to go to London we plan on taking the team to the
Harmony Sports Academy in Virginia so that they can learn more about the sport
and what is needed from a good soccer player,” he said.
Although
no players from the school have gone on to play for Bafana-Bafana yet, one of
them - Itumeleng Duiker, now plays for Bloemfontein Celtic.
Maleka
identifies the interaction with other children and exchanging soccer tips with
players that they meet from the different schools as making the tournament very
valuable. “Every trip we go on is a memory to be treasured for these young lads
and we are looking forward to the provincial finals,” he said.
Luckhoff
Combined School will also be in action on Saturday. They have been participating in the
tournament for three years and this is their first time at the provincial
finals. The trip to Bloemfontein will be the first time many of the players
will be leaving their village and there has been much excitement since the
announcement was made.
The
2013 team is a completely new one. “We are confident,” team manager, Frans
Deelman, said. He believes their two committed strikers, Devon Appies and
Masoes Deviano are players to watch out for. “They are young but already very
confident and comfortable on the ball and could well put us in the final, but
we know that it will not be easy on Saturday.”
The teams
participating in the Free State provincial finals are:
Monamodi
Primary School – Lejweleputswa Region
Selogile
Primary School – Fezile Dabi Region
Luckhoff
Combined School – Xhariep Region
Matswathaka
Primary School - Thabo Mofutsanyana Region
Emang
Primary School – Motheo Region
Tlong
- Kganyeng Primary School – Masilonyana Region
Two
provinces have already hosted their finals:
Northern Cape (Rietrivier Primary School) and KZN (Siphumele Primary
School) are already preparing for the National Finals. The next provincial finals will be in
Limpopo on April 20. The Danone Nations Cup National Finals will be in
Johannesburg on July 22.
