Ekurhuleni District start their Danone Nations Cup qualifiers

The Ekurhuleni District in Gauteng kicks-off their road to the under-12 Danone Nations Cup world cup, taking place in Morocco later this year, when the eight participating schools meet at Benoni Northerns on 15^th April; the winning team will progress through to the regional finals taking place at Benoni Northerns on 14^th May.

Competing teams are: Farrarmere Primary School, Rynfield Primary School, Tom Newby School, Benoni West Primary School, Summersfields Primary School, Laerskool Verkenner, Laerskool Westwood and Kathstan College 

The school that is tipped to win is Farrarmere Primary, who was beaten on penalties by Siphumelele Primary from KZN, at the national finals in 2014 and missed the opportunity to play in the world finals in Brazil.

They are back again this year, with a new coach, and are determined to go one step further this time.

“The year has started well for us,” said Coach Moeketsi “Pride” Moorosi, former Orlando Pirates professional player.  “We know all the schools we will be playing against and we have already won a prestigious tournament this year so the cluster games should be smooth sailing for us.  We are confident that we will be progressing to the next level in the tournament, but from then onwards we will be challenged.“

Gauteng is one of the most competitive provinces, the coach said, so meeting up with the schools from the other districts will not be easy, but he has faith that they will reach the provincial and national playoffs in the tournament.

“Positivity, focus and self belief are key principles to a winning team, but I also instil the importance of having fun and enjoying every game.  I tell my players that losing only means that you have to work extra hard next time around,” he said.

When the players found out that Moorosi is an ex-professional player, this made them even more hungry to become professional players themselves. “I try to be humble and grounded,” he said. “My history is my history and as a coach my job is to help these youngsters create their own history in football.”

Although Moorosi doesn’t like singling out individual players, he is excited about his captain, Trent Van Der Walt. “He plays centre back, he leads the game and the team,” he said. “He will go places in soccer should he decide to make a career out of it. He also plays rugby and I hear that he is good at it too.”

Last year Farrarmere had a lot of support from the parents and the coach hopes it will be the same this time around. “We believe in parent participation, it’s crucial for the kids,” Moorosi said. “The parents support the school in every way possible, they raise funds for the school, they pretty much support us in everything we do, so we are expecting parents at all our games cheering the boys.”

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

Gauteng Primary School, who were runners-up in the 2014 Danone Nations Cup, are hoping to win this time around

Gauteng’s Farrarmere Primary School were runners-up in the national finals of the under-12 Danone Nations Cup tournament last year and they have already got their entry for this year’s competition in, hoping to go one step further this time around.

And the man they are hoping will take them all the way to the world finals this time around is new coach, Moeketsi “Pride” Moorosi, who started training sessions with the team this week.

Moorosi is well qualified for the job. He played for Orlando Pirates reserves and decided to branch out get into coaching.  In 1993 he coached part time going into it on a full time basis in 2004.

Players he boasts to have coached include: Jabulani Mendu, who has now retired but who played for Kaizer Chiefs and Sundowns, Musa Bilankulu(Bidvest Wits) and Lorenzo Gordinho (Kaizer Chiefs).

In 2011 he went to Holland and was awarded the KNVB coaching certificate. He says he uses the KNVB approach in his coaching which is based on developing the minds of the player and teaching skills though repetition.

“Coaching is the same as teaching in the classroom,” he said. “Repetition is key, especially at this age when good habits need to be taught. Players improve their game by continuously repeating what you teach them during training sessions and even in a game.”

Moorosi does not believe in trends and fashions in soccer. “I do what works for me and my team. At the end of the day it’s all about what my team is comfortable with,” he said.

His plan is to bring excitement and fun to the players with his coaching. “I don’t want to put pressure on the team,” he said. “Of course we would like to win, but at this age it is about having fun and developing a love for the game. It’s also about building experience and confidence.”

The coach believes Farramere’s experience at last year’s Danone Nations Cup national finals was valuable. “Getting to the national finals the first year the school entered the tournament was a great achievement and has got the whole school excited about soccer and they are behind the team this year.”

Moorosi is grateful to the sponsors. “When you have companies like Danone sponsoring a tournament you have no choice but to be inspired.  They encourage kids to believe in their dreams and also keep healthy and active. We also have Mille who give us our kit which most schools cannot afford to purchase themselves and Nikon who take pictures to create memories our kids will never forget.”

“All we are waiting for now is for the South African Schools Football Association (SASFA) to schedule the fixtures for our district,” said Moorosi, who one day would like to coach beloved Orlando Pirates.

Schools have until 27 February to enter.  To get the entry form contact Themba Tshabalala at SASFA: themba.tshabalala@safa.net or on 011 567 2010.  Schools can also download the registration form on facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/DNCSouthAfrica.

First timers win the Danone Nations Cup Gauteng Provincial Finals

Benoni’s Farrarmere Primary School became the ninth and final school to win their provincial title in the 2014 under-12 Danone Nations Cup soccer tournament when they beat Sonqoba Primary 2-1 in the final of the Gauteng provincial playoffs at the WJ Clements Stadium in Reiger Park last Saturday.

The win means that Farrarmere will join the other eight provincial champions for the national finals, at the same venue, on Saturday 28^th June. The winners on that day will take the national title and, with it, the chance to represent the nation at the Danone Nations Cup World Finals in Sao Paulo, Brazil in November.

The Gauteng provincial title is a fairy tale come true for Farrarmere. It was the first time they have competed in the competition and according to their coach, Jacques Martinaglia, it has been an awesome experience for the team. “Being our first experience in the tournament winning the provincials was never in our minds,” he said.  “We told ourselves that this year we want to learn and have fun as we didn’t know what to expect. Winning the provincials was a shock, but we are happy and excited that we won. We are proud of the entire team and a step closer to going to Brazil.”

Martinaglia is a qualified rugby coach, but he said that he just fell in love with soccer and decided to coach. He has since attended a few coaching clinics run by the Dutch by KNVB body and by SAFA and he has created his winning formula on what he learned there.

On the build up to the nationals the coach said, “We will be doing basic training and play one friendly game over the weekend. The nationals are going to be grueling and competitive. We are not putting pressure on the boys and we will be happy with whatever result we get.”

Striker Breidyn Schaper is the team’s star player.  His sterling performance caught the eye of the Mamelodi Sundowns scout that attended the tournament.

Breidyn has been playing soccer from the age of six and is following in his father, Shawn Schaper’s footsteps. The older Schaper played for Amazulu for a number of years. “He influenced me to play soccer. I want to start where he finished off and hopefully go further than he got,” Breidyn said.

Breidyn scored 5 goals during the provincial finals and is looking forward to more at the nationals. “I am hoping to score in every game, but I know it won’t be easy,” he said.  “The week before the nationals my dad and I are going to review my performance at the provincials and see what I need to improve on come the nationals.”

Results of the Gauteng Provincial Finals:

Arcon 1 vs Bree 1 (Arcon won on penalties)

Lotus 0 vs Farrarmere 2

Sonqoba 2 vs Sihluziwe 0

Mathlasedi 2 vs Nationwide 1

Arcon 0 vs Sonqoba 2

Lotus 4 vs Mathlasedi 1

Bree 2 vs Sihluziwe 0

Farrarmere 0 vs Nationwide 0 (Nationwide won on penalties)

Sihluziwe 0  vs Arcon 0 (Sihluziwe won on penalties)

Nationwide 1 vs Lotus 1 (Nationwide won on penalties)

Sonqoba 0 vs Bree 0 (Bree won on penalties)

Mathlasedi 0 vs Farrarmere 3

Final - Farrarmere 2 Sonqobo 1

The nine provincial champions are:

Roodepan Primary School (Kimberley) - Frances Bard district, Northern Cape

Siphumelele Primary School (Inanda) – Pinetown district, KwaZulu-Natal

Credo Primary School (Sasolburg) - Fezile Dabi district, Free State

Rev MP Malatjie Primary School (Seshego) - Capricorn district, Limpopo

Kgetleng Primary School (Swartruggens) -  Ngaka Modiri Molema district, North West

Johannes Kananda Primary School (Witbank) – Nkangala district, Mpumalanga

Caley Junior Secondary School (Butterworth) – Amathole district, Eastern Cape

Lukhanyo Primary School (Hermanus) – Overberg, Western Cape

Farrarmere Primary School (Benoni) – Ekurhuleni North district, Gauteng