Preparations for the Barkerville Junior Secondary School boys that will be participating in the Danone Nations Cup World Finals are going exceptionally well, thanks to the Eastern Cape Department of Sport, Art, Culture and Recreation who has commissioned the coaches from the Eastern Cape Academy of Sport to run training camps to boost their skills.
Barkerville is situated in Mount Frere in the Eastern Cape, a poor rural village that does not have a football field, nets and training gear. The Boys won the Danone Nations Cup (South Africa) in July and their prize is a trip to Spain from 5th to the 10th October to compete with 39 other countries in a World Final, the biggest football tournament for children between 10 and 12 years old in the world.
Mr Luvuyo Mankanku, a coordinator at the Eastern Cape Academy for Sport has been working with the Barkerville team and is very optimistic about the boys’ chances of doing well in Spain. “From what I’ve seen over the past few weeks that I’ve been working with the boys, I think the team will do well”. Mankanku furthermore believes that a few of the boys have what it takes to pursue a career in football, that is if they get the proper development training: “ Some of these boys have really impressed me and even though they are still at the early stages in their development, with the right systems in place these boys could go far”.
This comes as no surprise to the people of Mount Frere, who have always believed in the sporting talent the region has to offer. “We have always produced top sportsmen in this Alfred Nzo district, Andile Jali is an example, but it is not just restricted to football, we are very strong in most of the sporting codes” says Mpilo Canga, head coach of the Barkerville team. “When we entered the Danone Nations Cup for the first time in 2009 we weren’t merely making up numbers, we always believed we could win.”
That belief has been the driving force behind the team who will be boarding a plane for the first time as they jet off to Spain. As an added motivator the boys will get to play the final day of the tournament at the home ground of Real Madrid, and will get to meet football legend Zinedine Zidane who is the tournaments ambassador.
Since its inception in 2000, the tournament has grown from 8 participating countries to now 40 and South Africa is the only country to win the event three times (2003,2007 and 2009) and to date the Danone Nations Cup has touched the lives of over 16 million children around the world. “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 Sandra Dorville, Communications manager of Danone Southern Africa.
The final training camp will take place in East London at the home of National First Division Club, Blackburn Rovers FC. There will be eight teams taking part under the guidance of the Eastern Cape Academy for Sports. “We have invited some of the East London schools to participate which will give the Barkerville team good match practise. As an Academy we will also be giving the other teams training as well to further boost the sport in the area”, said Mankanku.
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