Organised school sport for children and adolescents COVID 19 and beyond

 

How do you get back to school sport in a safe way? What does school sport look like after the Corona Virus? What criteria do you need to follow to run school sport in a safe way? What does the future of school sport look like? Professor's Candice Christie (University of Rhodes), policy brief lead, and Professor Rowena Naidoo (University of KZN) led a team of professors, scientists and sporting personalities from most of the universities in South Africa together with other a couple of universities from other countries in Africa and sporting research agencies came up with a brief to assist schools with the best practice guidelines to return sport to schools. “Sport has the power to change the world” – Nelson Mandela. Regular participation in exercise, sport and physical activity offers many proven benefits for children and adolescents. Beyond just the obvious physical advantages, physical activity plays an important role in promoting mental health and well-being and social development in children. Schools provide many opportunities for physical activity, in the form of structured and unstructured play, as physical education within the formal academic curriculum or through informal and formal organised sport, including competitive intra- or inter-school activity. This policy brief focuses on formal organised sport in schools and provides guidelines on how to manage school sport during a pandemic. It is premised on the fact that sports participation is important for both the physical and mental well-being of children, as a platform for safe and enjoyable physical activity, and a foundation for acquiring life skills and promoting social interaction. This brief draws on the principles and benefits of physical activity articulated by complimentary policy briefs in this series and from other literature. It is the outcome of a collective effort of experts concerned about the current and future impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children and adolescents who engage in organised sports in school. As many types of organised sport involves close physical contact, it is designed to provide guidance to all those engaged in organised sport in schools; participating learners, educators, coaches, parents/caregivers, spectators and the communities, on how to practice the best possible safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. This policy brief is best used alongside safety guidelines developed by Health Departments of national, regional and local governments and international health guidelines, as set out by the World Health Organisation (WHO) pandemic response team. Further, this document augments existing school organised sport policies, but can also serve as a stand-alone guide.

Cricket South Africa’s Nursery of Excellence, the Khaya Majola Week, kicks off at Michaelhouse in KwaZulu-Natal

The 2019 Khaya Majola Cricket will be played in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands from December 16th to 20th. It will hosted by the KZN Inland Schools Cricket Union and based at Michaelhouse School in Balgowan.

This is the 26^th time the week is being staged since the unification of South African Cricket in 1994, although the tournament has been running, in various guises since 1940.

It has never been hosted by KZN Midlands before, although it has been in that part of the country before, most recently in 2013 when Kearsney College was the venue. That week will be remembered for the one at which Kagiso Rabada announced himself and, five years later he was the number one bowler in the world. South Africa won the 2014 ICC under-19 World Cup, with the majority of the players in their ranks, having appeared at the Khaya Majola Week the year before. Rabada was the undoubted star of the week, along with Aiden Markram who, ironically, did not play in the Khaya Majola Week.

That fact emphasizes the importance of the Khaya Majola Week as a nursery of international cricketers, while making the important point that missing selection at this level is not the end of the world for a young cricketer.

That said, the record shows that the majority of Protea players in the various formats of the game who have been capped since 1994 played at the week and just about every one of the team currently in action against England appeared there.

In all 91 graduates of the week have gone on the represent the country including the most recent crop - Anrich Nortje, George Linde, Zubayr Hamza, Bjorn Fortuin, Senuran Muthusamy, Sinethemba Qeshile and Lutho Sipamla.

Whereas the majority of South African Schools players have come from a relatively small number of schools – the top three are Grey High School (24), Grey College (16) and King Edward VII School (15) – the picture is changing as Cricket South Africa’s efforts to transform the sport and provide opportunities to all players begin to bear fruit.

The talent development pipeline has been widened though the establishment of Regional Performance Centres (RPCs) and Development Hubs in rural areas and through the designation of schools where potential has been identified but who are struggling as CSA Focus Schools who receive assistance from the association.

Players emerging from those structures are being picked up by the mainstream cricketing schools and are being offered bursaries, and are being included in CSA’s talent acceleration programmes.

East London’s Hudson Park High School is a Focus School that is making an impact. Nine SA Schools players have come from the school since 2014, putting them 9^th on the list of schools producing SA Schools caps. Sinethemba Qeshile, selected for the Proteas T20 team in 2019, is a product of the school.

There are graduates of the talent acceleration programme in many of the teams who will be in action at Michaelhouse this year and, no doubt, many of them are destined for higher honours.

The games begin on Monday December 16th and continue until Friday the 20^th. On Saturday the 21^st the SA Schools team will play the SA Colts in a T20 game.

The full list of Proteas players who have come through the Khaya Majola Week since 1994 is:

1 Neil McKenzie, 2 Zander de Bruyn, 3 Mark Boucher, 4 Nantie Hayward, 5 Makhaya Ntini, 6 David Terbrugge, 7 Loots Bosman, 8 Victor Mpitsang, 9 Boeta Dippenaar, 10 Johan van der Wath, 11 Jacques Rudolph, 12 Mfuneko Ngam, 13 Justin Ontong, 14 Robin Peterson, 15 Jon Kent, 16 Albie Morkel, 17 Graeme Smith, 18 Johan Botha, 19 Monde Zondeki, 20 Ashwen Prince, 21 Thami Tsolekile, 22 Johan Louw, 23 Justin Kemp, 24 Alviro Petersen, 25 Garnett Kruger, 26 Andre Nel, 27 Dewald Pretorius, 28 Friedel De Wet, 29 Dale Steyn, 30 Hashim Amla, 31 JP Duminy, 32 AB de Villiers, 34 Morne Morkel, 35 Ryan McLaren, 36 Rory Kleinveldt, 37 Vernon Philander, 38 Morne Van Wyk, 39 Andrew Puttick, 40 Richard Levi, 41 Faf du Plessis, 42 Colin Ingram, 43 Roelof Van der Merwe, 44 Vaughn Van Jaarsveld, 45 Imraan Kahn, 46 Wayne Parnell, 47 Rusty Theron, 48 Lonwabo Tsotsobe, 49 David Miller, 50 Dean Elgar, 51 Kyle Abbott, 52 Quinton de Kock, 53 Henry Davids, 54 Marchant de Lange, 55 Aaron Phangiso, 56 Farhaan Berhadien, 57 Dewald Pretorius, 58 Stiaan Van Zyl, 59 Dane Piedt, 60 Bueran Hendricks, 61 Rilee Rossouw, 62 Simon Harmer, 63 David Wiese, 64 Mthokozi Shezi, 65 Reeza Hendricks, 66 Kagiso Rabada, 67 Dane Villas, 68 Temba Bavuma, 69 Eddie Leie, 70 Chris Morris, 71 Tabriaz Shamsi, 72 Andile Phuhlukwayo, 73 Keshav Maharaj, 74 Dwaune Pretorius, 75 Heino Kuhn, 76 Dane Paterson, 77 Duanne Olivier, 78 Magasilo Moshele, 79 Jon Jon Smuts, 80 Lungi Ngidi, 81 Theunis de Bruyn, 82 Wiaan Mulder, 83 Khaya Zondo, 84 Gihahn Cloete, 85 Rassie Van Dussen, 86 Anrich Nortje, 87 George Linde, 88 Zubayr Hamza, 89 Bjorn Fortuin, 90 Senuran Muthusamy, 91 Sinethemba Qeshile, 92 Lutho Sipamla.

Professional coach comes in to assist Muzuvukile Primary in their preparations for the Danone Nations Cup world finals in Spain

The Danone Nations Cup boys world finals kick-off in Spain on 10 September and South Africa’s Muzuvukile Primary School from Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, will be one of only a handful of countries among the 20 competing that will be represented by a school as the rest are all club teams. So, Danone Southern Africa has brought in a top South African coach, Scelo Qwaba, to assist Muzuvukile in their preparations.

Qwaba is currently a coach at the University of Zululand and his under-17 team recently won a national tournament. He has a CAF A Coaching License and is also a coach instructor and therefore well equipped to assist the school.

Qwaba will go through to the school on Tuesdays and Wednesdays to run their training sessions, with the possibility of increasing the number of days per week closer to the date of their departure for Barcelona.

“We know the competition will be tough in Barcelona,” said Muzuvukile coach, Xolani Mokoba.  “Our boys are usually the smallest at tournaments like these, so we are preparing the boys to play a carpet style of football as opposed to an aerial game. It’s a change to our style of football and the boys seem to have adapted well. However, extra training from a professional coach is exactly what we need. I do not have any coaching qualifications and would like to learn from Qwaba.”

The opportunity to play in Barcelona is a chance of a lifetime for many of the boys, believes Mokoba and he wants them to remember it as successful on the field as well as socially and culturally.  “The boys will always reflect back on this trip and I want them to be fond memories of fun, meeting people from different parts of the world and of great importance it must be a massive learning curve. Our manager has been on Facebook looking at what the other countries are doing and how they are preparing. My job is to get them as ready physically and mentally as possible to tackle whatever comes our way in each game.”

Muzuvukile has had great support from the local community. “The Richards Bay football club visited us and has donated balls and bibs to help us prepare,” Mokoba said. “We have also had great support from the Mseleni clinic. The nurses visited the boys, conducting medical examinations and educating them about proper nutrition leading up to our departure. They will be back every two weeks to monitor the boys' health and fitness. All this helps to ensure that we have done the best training we can.”

The first training session with Qwaba will be on Tuesday 27^th August. “Facing club teams will be tough, but not impossible,” said Masi Mkhize, Communications Manager, Danone Southern Africa. “So, Danone Southern Africa decided to give them a helping hand to get the boys ready.  The team representing Spain at the 2019 world finals will be FC Barcelona’s under-12s, for example. There’s no doubt that the kids will learn a lot from playing against such opposition, but our schools going to Spain are coached by teachers with no soccer qualifications and we would like to help them. We have brought in expert assistance for all the teams, Muzuvukile and Nomlinganiselo (2018 winners from Western Cape) as well as our girls team, Rebonwe (Gauteng).”

The teams leave for Barcelona on Monday, 7^th October and will have a couple of days to acclimatise prior to the commencement of the tournament on 10^th October.

“The 2018 and 2019 world finals will be held as a double header.  Barcelona is symbolic as it was in this city in 1919 that Isaac Carasso created the first Danone yogurt with the aim of improving one’s health,” said Mkhize.  “We are combining Danone’s centenary and the 20^th edition of the world final in a bumper edition this year.  It also coincides with our new brand positioning and purpose, One Planet One Health, which reflects our belief that the health of humankind and that of the planet are interlinked and both need to be protected and nurtured.

“Through the Danone Nations Cup, we are contributing to bringing this vision to life by promoting the importance of exercise. Further, we are encouraging our young athletes to ‘Play Football, Change the Game’, which is a rallying message to unite children, irrespective of their backgrounds and cultures, and to encourage them to become catalysts for positive change,” concluded Mkhize.

Muzuvukile Primary School from Richards Bay win the Danone Nations Cup KZN Finals and three of their boys have signed up with Mamelodi Sundowns

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 15^th 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 20^th 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 12^th 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).

Umlazi school to compete in the Danone Nations Cup for the first time and an additional school has been included in the tournament from New Germany

Adams Primary School, based in Umlazi, has qualified to compete in the KwaZulu-Natal Danone Nations Cup under-12 soccer tournament for the first time and will travel to the Princess Magogo Stadium on Saturday, 11^th May together with 12 other regional winners.  The ultimate winner will represent the province at the national finals in Gauteng on 15^th June to determine the team to compete in the world finals in Barcelona in October.

Dedication, hard work and focus are what the manager, Sivetye Zimele, believes helped them get to the provincial finals.  “We have been competing in the Danone Nations Cup for years now, but this year we have a new coach, Sphelele Msomi, a volunteer from our area, and he has focused on building the confidence of the players.  Many come from families that have very little and some do not have parents, or do not live with their parents and therefore they need that extra support from the teachers and coach to get them to believe in themselves and focus on what is important in life to build a better future.  Our coach has made a big difference to the team.”

Zimele is not sure what to expect at the provincial finals.  “What I know is that every team competing in the provincial final has got there after competing in gruelling qualifies, as we have, and we will not take any of them lightly.  The ultimate prize of a trip to Barcelona is a great motivator and I know that every team wants to get there.  Our strategy will be to watch the teams and make minor adjustments to our game plan to help us win matches and get to the next phase of the tournament.”

The Adams under-12 team is good this year, guarantees Zimele.  “Some of my players compete at club level which helps us as they train and compete regularly and have picked up good habits which they pass on to the other boys.  We would like to get to the national finals as we know that there are scouts in attendance, and I believe we have a couple of boys that could go far in the game.  We want to show them what we are capable of.”

There will be 13 schools competing in the provincial finals on Saturday of which 12 are regional winners and, in a bid to increase the number of schools that participate in KZN, schools not affiliated to a soccer body hosted a regional final with Lyndhurst Primary from New Germany emerging as the winner, and will make up the 13^th team on Saturday.

Lyndhurst is a former Model C school coached by Sthe Magwaza, a former learner, and he will be supported by the manager, Dumisani Lembethe.  “Dumisani was my coach when I was at the school and we have an excellent relationship and work well together,” he said.  “There are approximately 10 schools in our area and year on year we compete in the Highway League so competing in the Danone Nations Cup is something new for us.  We are not sure what to expect on Saturday at the provincial finals, but it will be an excellent learning experience for my team to compete against other schools.”

When asked how preparations are going Magwaza said there would be no changes in their style or training methods.  “We do not want to complicate things so we will train as normal and on Saturday we will see how the day unfolds.”

There will be 20 teams competing in the world finals in Spain.  Schools will play their final game of the tournament at the RCDE Stadium (home of La Liga club, Espanyol) in Barcelona, on 12^th October 2019. 

To celebrate Danone’s centenary and the 20^th edition of the Danone Nations Cup both the 2018 and 2019 world finals will take place together.  The winner at the national finals taking place in Gauteng on 15^th June will travel to Spain with last year’s winner Nomlinganiselo from the Western Cape.

Schools competing in the KwaZulu-Natal provincial finals include:

UMLAZI	Adams Primary School
ZULULAND	Bhekuzulu Primary School
UMKHANYAKUDE	Siyathuthuka Primary School
PINETOWN	George Full Service School
KING CETSHWAYO	Muzuvukile Primary School
ILEMBE	Maqumbi Primary School
AMAJUBA	Vulindela Primary School
HARRY GWALA (SISONKE)	Enqwaga Primary School
UGU	Delihlazo Primary School
UMGUNGUNDLOVU	Sidunge Primary School
UMZINYATHI	Mandleni Combined Primary School
UTHUKELA	Weenen Combined School
KZN INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS	Lyndhurst Primary 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).

 

Lyndhurst Primary School