The
Eastern Cape provincial finals in the under-15 COPA Coca-Cola football
competition will take place at the Thandanani Stadium in Matatiele on Saturday,
7 July (kickoff at 9.00am).
The
ultimate champion will join the other eight provincial winners at the national
finals in Johannesburg from July 12 to 14.
First
time contenders, Gungubele Junior Secondary School, from the rural area,
Cofimvaba, near Queenstown, will be representing the Chris Hani Region. The
school starts at Grade R and ends at Grade 9 so they have never been able to
enter COPA Coca-Cola. “We have heard so much about this tournament but it is
only now that it is an under-15 competition that we were able to participate,”
said coach, Wezo Ndiki.
Ndiki
has a South African Football Association (SAFA) Introductory Football Coaching
certificate and has been head coach at the school for ten years. “We are
a very small school with only 400 pupils and 16 educators, no soccer field, no
electricity and running water which puts us at a disadvantage. My players
have to walk about 5km’s every day to the community fields to
train. I also encourage my players to join local teams that compete
in the Kaulele Football Association League to help them develop into better
players.”
Ndiki singled out Siyavuya Baba,
his defender and team captain, as a key player. The youngster reads the
game well and he believes he will intimidate their opponents on Saturday.
Other participating schools are
Zamokuhle Junior Secondary School from Alfred Nzo Region, Centane Junior
Secondary School from Amathole Region, Ikamvalesizwe Combined
School from Cacadu Region, Ethembeni Junior Secondary School from
Joe Gqabi Region, Douglas Mbopha Senior Secondary School from Nelson Mandela
Region and Phezukwewilo Junior Secondary School from OR Tambo Region.
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