The under-12 Danone Nations Cup
Gauteng provincial finals will be happening at the WJ Clements Stadium on
Saturday, 17th June, and in action again this year will be St
Joseph’s Kulani Primary School representing Tshwane North.
In 2016 they emerged as the
Gauteng winners to go on to represent the province at the national finals.
Themba Mabuza will be at the helm
again. He has been in charge since 2015 after being recruited to the
school by their former coach, Margret Mabilo. The two live in close proximity
and Margret knew that Mabuza ran the local club, Manchester FC, to which most
of her players were attached. It seemed obvious to her to bring him in as
an external coach. After all she had been coaching the boys since 2010
but had never managed to help them through the cluster level.
To ensure he fully understood
working with children, the school sent him to attend a number of workshops put
together by an organisation called Education Sector Strategic Programme (ESSP),
and the results are now showing.
ESSP is a project run by the
Departments of Education, Sport, Art, Culture and Recreation, the Department of
Community Safety and Infrastructure with the purpose of delivering faster and
better services to the children of Gauteng.
“I learnt a lot about dealing
with kids there,” Mabuza said. “I also attend as many soccer games in the
Pretoria area as I can to pick up latest trends and gain insight into different
tactics which I then implement in the team.”
Four players from his club are in
this year’s team including the key striker, Tshepo Mogalane, who scored 3 goals
in last year’s nationals and has been at Manchester Football Club since 2015.
“Last year’s national finals were
very tough,” said Mbuza. “We lost 3 and won 1 game in the group stages.
I’m hoping that we get to the nationals again this year, and while we are
there, hopefully some of the players will be picked up by the soccer academies
that will be there searching for young talent.”
Being part of the DNC has been
one of the most notable moments in his coaching career and has taught him a lot
about youth development, Mabuza said.
“One of the key attributes
players need in this tournament is focus and discipline. Our success last year
has done a lot for the club and the school’s success. It has resulted in many
kids wanting to join us.”
The teams in Gauteng national
finals are:
Johannesburg: Florida Laan
Primary School
Johannesburg: Zenzeleni Primary
School
Ekurhuleni: Thembalethu Primary
School
Ekurhuleni: Roseview Primary
School
Tshwane: Sunnyside Primary School
Tshwane: St Joseph’s Primary
School
West Rand: JB Marks Primary
JHB Primary Schools: Reddam House
Prep School
Sedibeng: Arcon Park Primary
Ends
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