Free State is hosting
the second under-12 Danone Nations Cup provincial final scheduled to take place
at Grey College in Bloemfontein on 5th May where five schools will
contest for a spot in the national finals. The ultimate winner will compete in
the world finals happening in Spain in 2019.
Tshediso-Xolani
Primary School is the first to qualify and will represent the Fezile Dabi
district. The school first entered the tournament in 2008 and this is the first
time they have ever reached the provincial finals.
The school is situated
in the rural town of Tweeling with 1206 learners. Mokoena, who teaches Sesotho and English at the
school, has been coaching the team since 2008. He attributes his success this
year to getting his SAFA level one coaching qualification, obtained through the
Department of Basic Education in 2016.
“The course was aimed
at coaching youth and how to prepare and better train them from a young
age. I have since developed better tactics which was the answer to our
success this year,” said Mokoena, who also says he has a stronger team than in
previous years as many of his players also compete at local club level.
The key player in the
team is the captain, defender/midfielder Mokwining Tsotesi. Although he
is competing in the Danone Nations Cup for the first time, he also plays for
the All-Star Football Club. “He has great ball control and is always looking
for opportunities to score goals. He scored 9 goals during the regional
finals,” said the coach.
Mokoena says he is
nervous about the provincial finals as this will be the first time that the
school has gone this far in the competition. “We aren’t sure what to expect but
I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
The Fezile Dabi
regional finals took place on the 14th of April at Nelson
Mandela Primary School. Four schools participated: Nelson Mandela Primary
School, Dibaseholo Public School, Voorwaarts Primary School and Tshediso-Xolani
Primary School.
The games were played
in very hot conditions, which was a challenge, admitted the coach. Their
first match was against Dibaseholo Public School and both teams were exhausted
within 5 minutes. It ended in a 3-all draw. The second match was against
Voorwaarts Primary School. The players were more relaxed at this point and the
weather had cooled down. Tshediso- Xolani won 3-1
The final game was
against the hosts Nelson Mandela Primary School. It was their best game. The
Nelson Mandela players failed to communicate during the match and seemed to get
frustrated with each other. Tshediso- Xolani were able to beat them 6-0
ends
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