Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Limpopo School participates in the Danone Nations Cup provincial finals for the first time!



Megoring Primary School from Polokwane in Limpopo’s Capricorn District, is through to the provincial finals of the under-12 Danone Nations Cup happening at the Seshego Stadium, Polokwane, on 18 April, for the first time and they are looking forward to advancing even further in the competition.

Samuel Mabitsela, their team manager explained that they have been participating in the tournament for a number of years, but have never reached the provincial level. “It is great that, after years of participating, we finally move a step closer to the nationals,” he said.

“Last year we came close but we were eliminated at the regional finals by Rev MP Malaatjie Primary School, who went on to win the provincials. It is particularly satisfying that we beat them 1-0 this time to get to the provincial finals.  It was definitely revenge time for our school.  We were a bit nervous at first hoping that history would not repeat itself – and it didn’t,” Mabitsela said.

Megoring came into this year’s tournament with only two of last year’s players so it is a relatively new team.  “The team is pretty inexperienced and I didn’t even expect them to win, but they surprised me,” he said.

The team is coached by Nathaniel Mankga, a teacher at the school who has doubled up as a coach for many years. “He does not have any qualifications but he very passionate about soccer and about nurturing the players’ talent,” Mabitsela said. “We are situated in a rural area with soccer as the only extra mural activity on offer and we use the sport to keep the kids active and off the streets.  We also use the sport to highlight the importance of staying healthy.”

The team has been very busy preparing for the finals, even through the school holidays. “When the schools open we only have a week until the provincial finals so it is important to keep the kids minds focused on the game.  Repetition is the key to success at this age and we need to keep the kids practicing,” said Mabitsela. “Beating last year’s provincial winners has boosted the player’s confidence and now we are eying the trip to Gauteng to compete in the national finals in June.”

The coach and manager have discussed strategy and told the boys that they need to dominate and lead from the first game of the day. “If we win the first game that will set a precedent for the upcoming games, and make the other teams aware that we have came prepared and ready to fight for the title,” Mabitsela said. “The kids are also looking forward to consuming the many Danone products such as Nutriday and Yogisip which is on offer in abundance at the provincial finals.”

ends
About Danone
Danone Southern Africa is part of the Danone Group, one of the fastest-growing food companies in the world.  Danone is present in over 120 countries across all continents. With 160 plants and around 100,000 employees, the Danone Group is the number one worldwide for Fresh Dairy Products. Danone’s mission is to bring health through food to as many people as possible.
One of the core values of the Danone Nations Cup tournament is to encourage young people to believe in their dreams. Through this initiative Danone offers a sporting event that reaches out to and inspires millions of children all over the world


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