YOUNGSTERS DREAM OF PLAYING AT THE HOME OF REAL MADRID COMES TRUE

Rising football star, Asivuyise Ndzamela, has a lot to be proud of after helping his School, Barkerville Junior Secondary School, win a trip to Madrid, Spain, to compete in the Danone Nations Cup World Finals.  There will be 40 countries competing in this, the largest tournament for children between the ages of 10 and 12 in the world. 

Barkerville Junior Secondary School started campaigning for Spain back in February.  After a gruelling elimination process they managed to become the Eastern Cape Provincial champions and on to Gauteng for the National Finals, beating Kgwahlele Primary from Limpopo 1 – 0 to take top honours.

For the talented and ambitious central defender from Mount Frere in the Eastern Cape, travelling to Spain is not just a once in a lifetime sporting occasion but an inspiration for the future:  “Through winning the Danone Nations Cup and to be travelling to Spain in October, I have realised that dreams do come true and sometimes our dreams are closer than what we think”.

Ndzamela, who dreams of becoming a doctor and making a difference in his community, has identified his grandmother as his biggest motivator:   “My grandmother is very strong and has taught me how to persevere. Through those lessons I’ve gone from playing soccer with a ball made from plastic bags and goal posts made from mud bricks to going to represent my country in Spain, even playing at the home ground of Real Madrid. I hope to make my country and the people of Mount frère very proud.”

The 40 countries competing in the 2011 Danone Nations Cup World Finals will arrive in Spain on 5 October and a draw will take place to determine the fixtures.  The Group round robin stage kicks-off on 6 October.  On 9 October all countries will play their final games in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, the home ground of Real Madrid.  Walking around the field and watching all the teams in action will be none other than the Danone Nations Cup ambassador, Zinedine Zidane.

Group Danone, one of the world’s largest producers of fresh dairy products, started the competition in 2000 with the desire to act sustainably on behalf of children’s well-being and health. “Football as a universal sport is the perfect way to promote values like fair play, the pleasure of the game, team spirit, sharing -and above all- human values like openness, and respect”, explains Sandra Dorville, communications manager of Danone South Africa.

“By bringing healthy food and some good healthy fun together, children learn about life through a shared experience. And to those who get to the world finals, it is an experience that will undoubtedly become a cherished memory,” says Dorville.

With the abundance of talent in the Barkerville side and the leadership and composure of Ndzamela in defence, as well as the burning desire for success that the boys from the Eastern Cape posses, the Nation can’t help but be optimistic, with a certain degree of belief that our boys can once again return with the coveted title of world champs.

For many of these boys, if not all, this will be the third time they will be leaving the dusty roads of Mount Frere and the first time they will ever have the experience of flying across the world to get firsthand experience of European culture.  This experience will be life changing and will impact the boys for the rest of their lives.

Ndzamela (Blue) breaks away with the ball

Ndzamela (Blue) tussles with his opponent