Previous Winner through to Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup Gauteng Provincial Finals

Rosina Sedibane Modiba Sport School, from Laudium in Pretoria, is through to the Gauteng Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup provincial finals taking place at the Muckleunek Stadium in Mamelodi on Saturday, 17 August. Games start at 9am.

They were runners-up in the Gauteng finals last year and finished 3^rd in the national finals. The team’s coach, Tumelo Malabo, says they are hoping to do better this year and are looking forward to the upcoming challenges. “We are planning to win the provincial title and qualify for the national finals again,” he says. “We have been playing in this tournament for many years now and know what is expected of us. The challenge is that the standard of football in Gauteng is increasing all the time and we know that it will not be easy.”

As third place-winners in the competition last year, the school won a total of R500 000 in prize money. They have submitted their wish list to the trust that administers the prize money and are awaiting the implementation of it. “We asked for the school fields to be improved, for washing machines and dryers to be installed, and for big screen TVs,” Malabo said.

Rosina Sedibane expected to make it to the knockout stages of the tournament, so they have been focussed on preparing for just that, Malabo says. “We practise 5 times a week and make sure that we have a friendly match every Saturday. After every game we look back to see where we went wrong and where we are lacking in our tactics. We are currently rectifying our defensive tactics and coming up with ways to create opportunities to score goals.”

Three of the players from 2012, Thabo Moloi, Snethemba Ngidi and Cebo Meyiwa, are now playing for SuperSport United.  None of them could play in the national finals last year because they had commitments for the South African U20 team. “Without them we still finished third.  We are now using the boys to come and help us coach and even teach the youngsters a few tricks that they have learned,” Malabo said. “They are giving back to the school and I believe that their presence at the school is significant to the others that aspire to be like them, they encourage the other players and they look up to them.”

The 8 teams competing include:

Mohloli High School (Sedibeng East)

Rosina Sedibane (Tshwane South)

Clapham High School (Tshwane North)

SAFA School of Excellence (Ekurhuleni North)

Thaba Jabula (Johannesburg North)

Tharabollo High School (Sedibeng West

Sunward Park (Ekurhuleni South)

Waterstone College (Johannesburg South)

Ends.

About the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup:

·       The tournament is run under the auspices of the South Africa Football Association (SASFA)

   Named after prominent businessman Patrice Motsepe’s late mother, the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup offers the biggest prize money at school level in Africa (R3.4 million in total). 

·       The sponsors are:  Sanlam, the Motsepe Foundation and the Sanlam Ubuntu-Botho Community Development Trust.

·       The primary objective of the tournament is to revive the culture of school football amongst students between the age of 16 and 19 years old.

·       The tournament also gives players the opportunity to showcase their skills to soccer scouts with the talented players being recruited into development structures to be nurtured and shaped into professional players.

Rietvale High School takes home R100 000 as Northern Cape Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup Champions

Rietvale High School is from the small town of Ritchie, 50km outside Kimberley, and is making a name for itself as a football powerhouse in the Sanlam Kay Motspe Schools Cup competition. The school has won the Northern Cape Provincial finals in the tournament three years in a row.

Winning this round means the school gets R100 000 which, according to team manager, Barry Kammies, will be used, together with the winnings from 2012, to purchase a school bus to transport players to sports events.  The R100 000 funds won in 2011 were used to build a fence around the property.

Kammies believes that the win is due to hard work and focus.  “We believe in consistency, and that comes from working hard together,” Kammies says. “We try to balance the equation of new players and old players in the team and we have one vision in the team – winning our matches.”

Kammies says they have analysed their strengths and believe they have a solid defence and strong captain and striker Angelo van Rooi. “He is good and very fast on the field, he has ball control, discipline and a great attitude towards soccer,” Kammies said. “We will be building on those strengths in preparation of the national finals.”

The team has the support of the entire school.  Busses have been hired for supporters to go to the national finals.

In the mean time they are hard at work preparing for the national finals. “For the next two weeks we will focus on fitness, tactics - formation, spacing and passing the ball – and concentration on the field,” Kammies says. “Our central midfielders need to work hand in hand with helping the defence to make sure that their opponents don’t play on their weaknesses. Hard work is the reason why we have managed to win this competition three times, now we have to be committed to the game and every player must give all for his team mates if we want to go further.”

Kammies says he has seen the excitement levels at the school grow because of the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup. “There has been an increase in sports participation and in support in the school since we first took part in the tournament. Every soccer player feels proud to have contributed in a team that keeps coming back with positive results,” he said.

Ends.

About the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup:

·       The tournament is run under the auspices of the South Africa Football Association (SASFA)

   Named after prominent businessman Patrice Motsepe’s late mother, the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup offers the biggest prize money at school level in Africa (R3.4 million in total). 

·       The sponsors are:  Sanlam, the Motsepe Foundation and the Sanlam Ubuntu-Botho Community Development Trust.

·       The primary objective of the tournament is to revive the culture of school football amongst students between the age of 16 and 19 years old.

·       The tournament also gives players the opportunity to showcase their skills to soccer scouts with the talented players being recruited into development structures to be nurtured and shaped into professional players.

MPUMALANGA WILL BE FIRST TO HOST THEIR SANLAM KAY MOTSEPE SCHOOLS CUP PROVINCIAL FINAL

Qhubulwazi High school from the Gert Sibanda region has qualified to compete in the first under-19 Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup provincial final and will be going to Bushbuckridge on 20 July to play in the Mpumalanga provincial finals.

Should they finish first or second there, the next stop is the national finals in Durban in September when the top two sides from each of the nine provinces will be playing for a slice of the R3.4 million on offer. 

Qhubulwazi coach, TC Tsotetsi, is thrilled that the side has made it through to the next round. “The boys played brilliantly throughout our qualifiers. They exceeded my expectations. Their spirits are very high and they are already looking forward to playing the provincials,” he said.

This is the fifth time that the school has played in the competition, and the first time they are going to the provincial finals. “Last year we were knocked out at the regional stage. It’s a huge achievement. The school as a whole is proud of us and they are supporting us 100%,” Tsotetsi said. “Our dream is to win some of the prize money so that we can upgrade our school. I also believe we have some exceptional talent this year and we are hoping that at least one will be scouted and join a professional club.” 

He explained that over the years he has been developing a defensive system, trying to keep it tight and prevent the opponents from scoring goals. “I always tell the players they need to be mentally prepared in each and every game. Before you outplay opponents physically, you have to outplay them mentally. And that’s what they think of every time they have a match to play,” he said.

Qhubulwazi is a combined school and Tsotetsi has been coaching these boys since they were in primary school.  He singles out one player that has grown tremendously over the years, Siyabonga Nxumalo. “He never used to care about soccer or making it to practise but now, even when I’m not present during practise he’s the one who takes up the reigns and becomes the “coach” for the day,” he said.

Siyabonga feels his performance in the competition so far has been good. “I try to play an honest clean game and I’m satisfied with the results. I‘m training hard for our upcoming games so that I can help the team succeed,” he said.

About the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup:

·       Named after prominent businessman Patrice Motsepe’s late mother, the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup offers the biggest prize money at school level in Africa (R3.4 million in total). 

·       The sponsors are:  Sanlam, the Motsepe Foundation and the Sanlam Ubuntu-Botho Community Development Trust.

·       The primary objective of the tournament is to revive the culture of school football amongst students between the age of 16 and 19 years old.

·       The tournament also gives players the opportunity to showcase their skills to soccer scouts with the talented players being recruited into development structures to be nurtured and shaped into professional players.