It’s been a very successful weekend for Muzuvukile
Primary School of rural Nseleni Township outside Richards Bay. The
school’s under-12 soccer team won the Danone Nations Cup KwaZulu-Natal
provincial final for the second successive year and three of the boys who were
competing on the day were immediately signed up by Mamelodi Sundowns and join
the club’s Youth Academy and attend high school in Gauteng in 2020.
The Danone Nations Cup KZN provincial finals took place
at the Sugar Ray Xulu stadium in Pinetown on the weekend, with 13 schools
competing. Teams in four pools played a round robin, with the winners
progressing to the semi-finals. It ended with Muzuvukile meeting Georgedale
Full Service School from Hammarsdale in the final match.
The final saw a fine display of soccer with both teams
rising to the challenge and showing a strong will to win. Credit must go to the
Georgedale’s goalkeeper who saved more than 12 shots at goal to keep the score
down. Muzuvukile played an attractive attacking brand of football.
Their passing was short and accurate and the team worked well together.
Although they dominated territory and possession
throughout, it was Georgedale who took the lead when Surprise Mnguni scored
against the run of play. It was short-lived because within seconds of the
restart Muzuvukile talisman, Khethokuhle Nkosi, equalised and from there on
there was shot after shot from the Muzuvukile strikers with Georgedale trying
to take advantage of the odd counter attack.
In the end Muzuvukile were too good for their
Pinetown opponents and Mvelase Siphokophelo scored a second goal for them,
making the final score was 2-1, putting them into the national finals again.
An exuberant
team manager, Tami Shezi said they will devise a training schedule for the
build-up to the national finals based on what they learnt last year. “We
have been there before and we noted that the boys were overwhelmed by the big
occasion. They had never played before such a large crowd and they made a
lot of silly mistakes. We only have one boy from last year back in the
team and we will make sure the team is well prepared psychologically.
Rather than get nervous they must go onto the field to have fun and treat every
game as a new learning experience. That will help them become better players.”
Muzuvukile has
been competing in the tournament for the past 12 years. “Last year the
school brought in an external coach, Jimmy Mkhoba and he has proved to be the
catalyst for change. He has such a passion for the game that he trains the kids
after school as well.
“This is an
impressionable age and rather than allow the youth to get caught up with bad
influences, we need to keep them active on the soccer field,” he said. “So
Jimmy coaches in the afternoons as well. Every player in the team attends
extra training and that has resulted in us having an
advantage.”
Neither Shezi nor Mkhoba
have formal coaching qualifications, but both have
played the game and are avid soccer followers. They believe experience plays a
major part in their success. “We have an excellent team this year and we were
very excited when the Mamelodi Sundowns scout, Mandla Mazibuko, approached us
to offer three of our boys the opportunity to join their academy next year,”
Shezi said. “This is an opportunity that will change their lives for
ever. We will follow their progress and it will be rewarding to one day be able
to say that we played a part in their success.”
The team will join the other eight provincial
champions in Gauteng on 15th June to compete in the national finals
where the school that will represent South Africa at the world finals will
emerge. To celebrate Danone’s centenary and the 20th edition of
the Danone Nations Cup both the 2018 and 2019 champions will travel together to
Spain.
There will be 20 teams competing
in the world finals and they will all play their final match of the tournament
at the RCDE Stadium (home of La Liga club, Espanyol) in Barcelona, on 12th
October.
RESULTS:
POOL A
Vulindlela Primary School,
Bhekuzulu Primary School, Delihlazo Primary School, Siyathuthuka Primary School
POOL B
Lyndhurst Primary School,
Georgedale Full Service School, Weenen Combined School
POOL C
Adams Primary School, Sidunge
Primary School, Engwaqa Primary School
POOL D
Maqumbi Primary School,
Muzuvukile Primary School, Mandleni Combined Primary School
RESULTS:
Vulindlela 1 vs 0 Bhekuzulu
Lyndhurst 0 vs 5 Georgedale
Adams 0 vs 1 Sidunge
Maqumbi 0 vs 4 Muzuvukile
Delihlazo 0 (2) vs 0 (1)
Siyathuthuka
Georgedale 2 (2) vs 2 (1) Weenen
Sidunge 1 vs 0 Engwaqa
Muzuvukile 4 vs 1 Mandleni
Vulindlela 0 vs 1 Delihlazo
Bhekuzulu 4 vs 2 Siyathuthuka
Weenen 1 (4) vs 1 (3) Lyndhurst
Engwaqa 0 (2) vs 1 )0) Vulindlela
Bhekuzulu 2 (3) vs 2 (4)
Delihlazo
Semifinal 1:
Dilihlazo 0 vs 2 Muzuvukile
Semifinal 2:
Georgedale Full Service School 2 vs 1 Sidunge Primary School
Final: Muzuvukile 2 vs 1
Georgedale Full Service School
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
GROUP
DANONE
Dedicated
to bringing health through food to as many people as possible, Danone is a
leading global food & beverage company building on health-focused and
fast-growing categories in three businesses: Essential Dairy & Plant-Based
Products, Waters and Specialized Nutrition. Danone aims to inspire healthier
and more sustainable eating and drinking practices, in line with its ‘One
Planet. One Health’ vision which reflects a strong belief that the health of
people and that of the planet are interconnected. To bring this vision to life
and create superior, sustainable, profitable value for all its stakeholders,
Danone has defined its 2030 Goals: a set of nine integrated goals aligned with
the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. Danone commits
to operating in an efficient, responsible and inclusive manner; it holds itself
to the highest standards in doing business, as reflected by its ambition to
become one of the first multinationals certified as B CorpTM. With more than
100,000 employees, and products sold in over 120 markets, Danone generated
€24.7 billion in sales in 2018. Danone’s portfolio includes leading
international brands (Actimel, Activia, Alpro, Aptamil, Danette, Danio,
Danonino, evian, Nutricia, Nutrilon, Volvic, among others) as well as strong
local and regional brands (including AQUA, Blédina, Bonafont, Cow & Gate,
Horizon, Mizone, Oikos, Prostokvashino, Silk, Vega).
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