Soweto Rivals compete for the Danone Nations Cup Regional Title

 

When the Soweto regional playoffs in under-12 Danone Nations Cup get underway this year they are going to feature a mini Soweto derby that has something of the passion and intensity of the legendary Orlando Pirates vs Kaizer Chiefs clashes.

Ekuphemeleni Primary School of Jabulani, Soweto and Usindo Primary of Zondi Soweto, have a longstanding rivalry in netball, athletics and soccer and clashes between the two schools are always well attended and they generate a lot of interest.

Ekuphemeleni has had the upper hand recently – they beat Usindo in netball and athletics last year, and knocked them out of the Danone Nations Cup.

Usindo, however, has already won the athletics meeting this year, and are looking to turn the table in netball and soccer as well. The Danone Nations Cup gives them the opportunity to start that process.

Ekuphemeleni coach and manager, Jabu Ndlovu said it’s great to see the competitiveness among the players of the two schools. “They only meet once during the soccer season. And we will have to be prepared mentally and physically because this is one of the biggest tournaments, and an opportunity to travel to France for the world finals.”

Ekuphemeleni has been participating in the Danone Nations Cup since 2011 after watching the world finals that year at the Orlando Stadium.

Ndlovu chose his team in November last year and they have been training ever since. “It’s important to work with the class teachers at the school,” he said. “It’s important to know how the players are doing in the classroom as this will affect them on the soccer pitch.”

The team at Usindo Primary School is managed by twins: Lungelo Nala, the coach, and Mrs Nomalungelo Mooi, the team manager.

The school has been taking part in the tournament since 2014 but they have not managed to make it past district level. Like Ekuphemeleni, they have been in training since last year and are hoping to turn the tables on their Soweto rivals in the tournament. 

Nala is always amazed at how the players, who are shy and quiet in class, become transformed on the soccer field. “They start to express themselves, it’s as if we are dealing with different learners,” he said.

It’s the first time that Mooi and Nala are together with the team and they are looking forward to the challenge. The team is training three times a week at this stage.

Mooi said the build up to matches against Ekuphemeleni is always hectic because of the traditional rivalry. “The whole school becomes involved and comes to watch the games,” she said.

Nala believes tournaments like the Danone Nations Cup are important because they allow the kids to expose other talents.” Some learners aren’t academically gifted so their self-esteem goes down and they feel like they are not important. Sport is important because it can boost confidence and build personality,” he said.

“And the Danone Nations Cup is very important to some communities like ours where there is a high rate of crime and many drop out of school. Most of the learners don’t have much to look forward to once they get home, but they do have soccer to concentrate on now.”

 

Orlando Pirates youngster recalls his Danone Nations Cup world final experience

Young Siyanda Ngubo’s international football career started when he was just 12 years old when he represented Bree Primary School in the 2008 Danone Nations Cup world finals in France.  Since then he has been with the Orlando Pirates development academy and has played for the under 17, under 19 and Bafana Bafana national teams.

Siyanda is now 19 years old and a bright football future awaits him.   He is currently on loan to Royal Eagles in Durban for the season before returning to Orlando Pirates.  “Soccer is everything to me.  I have played with and against great players and have been coached by great coaches.  It has been an interesting and exciting journey since my Danone Nations Cup days and I look forward to what the future holds.  I am hoping to get in more play time when I get back to Orlando Pirates.”

Siyanda looks back fondly on his year at Bree Primary and his trip to France and admits it played a huge part in his development as a player.  “The world finals opened my eyes to the opportunities there are out there and helped build my confidence.”

His road to football success began humbly.  “I used to play soccer in the streets of Kwamakhutha in Durban with my friends,” he said. “Then when I was 9 years old my friends and I decided to join the local club in the area, Young Boys.”

His coach at the time was Mlungisi Mchunu who saw the potential in the youngster and in 2007 took some of the boys to Johannesburg to attend trails at Orlando Pirates. “We were there for a week. Then a week after being home I received the call from Mandla Qhoki of Orlando Pirates development who informed me that I should start packing because Orlando Pirates wanted to sign me for their Academy.”

In January 2008 Siyanda joined Bree Primary on a scholarship.  “I will never forget that year. It was the year that I got signed to the academy and the year that I got to travel internationally for the very first time,” Siyanda said.

“I could not believe that I was joining the very club that I loved so much.  Being a part of the academy was inspirational.  We interacted with the first team and got to travel and play soccer. My first trip was to France and that experience helped me decide that football was going to be my life no matter what. This shaped and paved my soccer career and I will forever be grateful for both Danone and Orlando Pirates.”

Siyanda remembers every minute of the trip to France.  One of the highlights was seeing the Eiffel tower.  “We would also sing when we got out of our buses, before a match and even after a game. All countries loved us, they loved hearing us sing, and we won the trophy for team spirit at the end of the tournament.”

After completing primary school Siyanda went to Johannesburg Secondary School where he matriculated.

In 2011, at age 15, he was selected to be a part of the SA under-17 national team. “It was my first call up and I was honoured to wear the national jersey, I wore it with pride because I worked very hard to get selected. We played qualifying games for the u-17 African Championship but unfortunately we didn’t qualify.”

In 2012 he was selected for the SA u-20 national team that won the Cosafa Cup, and in 2014 Orlando Pirates signed Siyanda and loaned him to a North West team called NW Shining Stars who participate in the ABC Motsepe League.

He was there for one year and that same year got his first senior national call up.

“When Shakes Mashaba was coaching us as under 20’s he always said that if we play well and work hard we will get more call ups. So when I was selected I knew that it was because I was working hard and it showed, Shakes credits hard workers and gives them a chance,” Siyanda said.

He played in the SA senior team during the Nelson Mandela challenge. “I learned so much from all the players that I played with. They knew that it was my first time and they gave me advice and just told me to play and forget about the nerves.”

Siyanda has some advice for the Bree team that has qualified for the Danone Nations Cup world finals happening in Morocco in October.  “Firstly I want to congratulate the team for reaching the World Finals.  It is not an easy achievement I know how hard it is. My advice would be to just play the soccer that they know best and they should not try to imitate what other countries are doing.

“Scoring goals early in the games is very important.  They must relax, be focused and remember to have fun, make friends and enjoy Morocco.”

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

The 2009 Danone Nations Cup World Final Winners, Bree Primary School win the Gauteng Danone Nations Cup

The Gauteng provincial championship playoffs in the under-12 Danone Nations Cup took place at the WJ Clements Stadium in Reiger Park on Saturday and from the word go there were only two teams in the tournament.

Bree Primary School and Sonqoba Primary School, two of the most successful teams in Gauteng down the years, dominated their groups and met in the final.

Sonqoba had made the final game of the Gauteng provincial finals in the two previous years, winning the 2013 final to represent the province in the National Finals. Bree were the last South African winners of the Danone Nations Cup World Finals in 2009. Sonqoba finished the group stages unbeaten scoring 8 goals in their 3 games, while Bree Primary School started well by beating Christian Progressive Academy 2-0 but then got overconfident and drew with one of the weaker schools in the competition, Tsumbedzo Primary School 1-1, and went down on penalties. Bree Primary School did just enough to win their group ahead of Christian Progressive Academy and advance to the final.

The final game was a tight contest and Bree had the best chances in the first half but kicked a ball just wide in open play then watched a free kick drift past the left hand corner of the goal.

The second half was a game of chess that saw both teams battle to get anywhere near the goal until the stroke of full time when Bree was awarded a penalty. The penalty kick was a decent one but thanks to a fantastic save by the Sonqoba goalkeeper they could not score.

So, it was 0-0 at the end and Bree won the penalty shootout 2-0 to advance to the national finals which will be at the same venue on the 27^th of June.

Mr Devanand Kallicharan, headmaster of Bree Primary School and manager of the team, said he was delighted with the win, but also concerned, “We have a good team and the team played well during the tournament but I have a couple of concerns, the first is that two of our top players got injured in the first game of the Provincial finals so I am not sure if they will be fit enough for the National finals and the second is that we had a lot of good opportunities in today’s game and we were not able to score."

Mandla Mazibuko, Mamelodi Sundowns scout and coach was there to run his eye over the players and he said there was a lot of good talent on display, “Going into the final game, Sonqoba were the favourites due to their precision in front of the goals but Bree Primary School played the better game in the final. I have identified players from all of the teams in the tournament and I will come to the national finals to see how some of these players play against the top opposition in their age group."

Danone Nations Cup Gauteng Results

Bree Primary School 2 vs Christian Progressive Primary School 0

Sikhulisile Primary School 1 vs Nancefield Primary School 3

Michael Mkhwanazi Primary School vs  Tsumbedzo Primary School 0

Arcon Park Primary School 1vs  Sonqoba Primary School 2

Bree Primary School  1vs  Michael Mkhwanazi Primary School  0

Sikhulisile Primary School vs  0 Arcon Park Primary School 1

Christian Progressive School  1 vs Tsumbedzo Primary School 0

Nancefield Primary School  0 vs Sonqoba Primary School 3

Tsumbedzo Primary School 1 (2) vs Bree Primary School 1 (0)

Sonqoba Primary School 3  vs Sikhulisile Primary School 0

Michael Mkhwanazi Primary 1 vs Christina Progressive School  3

Arcon Park Primary School 0 (2)  vs Nancefield 0 (3)

Final

Bree 0 (2) vs  Sonqoba 0 (0)

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

DNC Partners:

Vodacom powers up subscribers to be South Africa’s next millionaire

This summer Vodacom is bringing the power to its subscribers as one lucky South African stand the chance to be a millionaire as Vodacom will be handing over one million Rand to one lucky subscriber at the legendary Soweto Derby.

This will be the first millionaire drawn from the Vodacom 20x More Summer campaign and is one of the many prizes available to subscribers over the duration of the campaign.

In celebrating 20 years of empowering South Africans, Vodacom are giving customers the best Summer in 20 years.  As part of the 20x More Summer campaign the telecoms giant will be giving customers 400 million gifts in the form of airtime, data, fashion and food vouchers, amongst a number of other prizes and experiences.

 “This is just one of the ways in which we as Vodacom are rewarding our customers for their loyalty. This is a particularly significant year for South Africa and we as Vodacom want to celebrate the journey that we have travelled with South Africans over the past 20 years,” said Bronson Mokabela, Executive Head: Sponsorship and Regional Marketing.

The closing date for all entries for a chance to become the country’s latest millionaire will be at midnight on 27 November with the first winner being announced at the biggest sporting event on the South African sporting calendar, the Soweto Derby taking place on 6 December.

To stand a chance to be South Africa’s next millionaire, simply recharge for R12 or more or buy a Summer bundle - and you will automatically be entered into the competition.

Absa Premiership Match Press Kits Supersport United v Orlando Pirates 5 April

ABSA PREMIERSHIP

2013/14 Season

MATCH PRESS KIT

FROM BACKPAGE PICS

SuperSport United v Orlando Pirates

Lucas Moripe Stadium

Saturday 05 April 2014

15h00 kick-off

Match background   

-       SuperSport United and Orlando Pirates will both be looking to bounce back from midweek Absa Premiership defeats when they clash at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday, 05 April 2014, kick-off at 15h00.

-       SuperSport have gone four league matches without a win and suffered a 3-1 defeat at home to Maritzburg United in midweek.

-       The Tshwane side has claimed 18 points from their 12 home matches so far this season.

-       Their next three league opponents are Free State Stars, Ajax Cape Town (both away) and Bidvest Wits (home).

-       Matsatsantsa are placed eighth on the Absa Premiership log with 34 points from 23 matches.

-       Pirates suffered a third defeat from their last six league matches when they were beaten 1-0 at home by Mpumalanga Black Aces in midweek.

-       The Soweto side has claimed 16 points from their 10 away matches so far this season.

-       Their next three league opponents are Maritzburg United (home), Bloemfontein Celtic (away) and Platinum Stars (home).

-       The Buccaneers are placed fourth on the Absa Premiership log with 37 points from 23 matches.

-       In head-to-head stats, SuperSport and Pirates have met in 45 league matches since 1990.

-       The Buccaneers have 20 wins compared to 14 for Matsatsantsa, while 11 matches have been drawn.

-       SuperSport have won eight of their 22 home matches against Pirates, suffering nine defeats in the process.

-       When the teams met earlier this season in Soweto, Matsatsantsa claimed a 2-1 away win thanks to goals from Niang and Ndlovu.

-       SuperSport’s line-up from their 3-1 loss to Maritzburg: Williams, Moloi, Diouf, Gyimah, Dean (Niang 64’), Mkhabela, Mokeke, Chenene (Manyama 64’), Phala, Mahlangu, Grobler.

-       Pirates’ line-up from their 1-0 loss to Aces: Dauda, Nyauza, Mahamutsa, Sangweni, Matlaba, Myeni (Pelembe 83’), Manyisa, Ntshumayelo, Segolela, Makola, Majoro (Bacela 67’).

                                                                                                                       

Previous meetings   

Last ten league meetings

Season          Result                                                Scorers

2008/09          SuperSport 1-1 Pirates       Laffor; Mabalane

2009/10          SuperSport 3-0 Pirates       Klate 2 (1 pen), Monterio

2009/10          Pirates 0-0 SuperSport

2010/11          SuperSport 0-1 Pirates       Mbuyane

2010/11          Pirates 0-1 SuperSport       Gould

2011/12          Pirates 3-0 SuperSport       McCarthy (pen), Chansa, Mabena

2011/12          SuperSport 1-2 Pirates       Doutie; Rantie, Lekgwathi

2012/13          SuperSport 0-0 Pirates

2012/13          Pirates 1-0 SuperSport       Manyisa

2013/14          Pirates 1-2 SuperSport       Jele; Niang, Ndlovu

Head-to-Head

(League only, since 1990)

Home                                    

                        P         W        D         L          GF       GA

SuperSport    22        8          5          9          25        28

Pirates            23        11        6          6          31        16

Away

                        P         W        D         L          GF       GA

SuperSport    23        6          6          11        16        31

Pirates            22        9          5          8          28        25

Total 

                        P         W        D         L          GF       GA

SuperSport    45        14        11        20        41        59

Pirates            45        20        11        14        59        41

Fixtures and results

SuperSport United

2013/14 Absa Premiership results

No       Date                H/A     Opponent      (HT) Result    Goal scorers

1          03/08/13         H         FS Stars         (1-1) W 4-1    Niang pen 45’ 90+3’, Chenene 49’, Doutie 85’

2          28/08/13         A         U Pretoria      (1-0) W 1-0    Maluleka 26’

3          31/08/31         H         Chiefs                        (0-1) W 3-1    Mkhabela 53’, Chenene 70’, Grobler 73’ pen

4          15/09/13         A         Aces               (0-1) D 1-1     Mathebula 79’

5          18/09/13         H         Swallows       (0-1) L 1-2      Gyimah 73’

6          21/09/13         A         AmaZulu       (1-1) D 1-1     Phala 9’

7          23/10/13         A         Maritzburg     (0-0) W 1-0    Mathebula 82’

8          27/10/13         H         Celtic              (0-1) D 1-1     Niang 80’ pen

9          03/11/13         A         P Stars           (0-1) L 0-3

10        09/11/13         H         Arrows            (1-1) W 3-1    Chenene 10’, Grobler 57’, Mathebula 64’

11        26/11/13         H         Ajax                (0-1) L 1-2      Zuma 86’

12        16/12/13         H         Sundowns    (1-0) D 1-1     Khumalo 21’

13        21/12/13         A         Polokwane    (1-0) D 1-1     Diouf 12’

14        18/01/14         A         Pirates            (0-0) W 2-1    Niang 56’, Ndlovu 67’

15        28/01/14         H         AmaZulu       (0-0) L 0-1

16        31/01/14         H         U Pretoria      (1-0) W 1-0    Manyama 9’

17        05/02/14         A         Chiefs                        (0-1) L 0-1

18        12/02/14         H         Aces               (1-0) W 2-0    Phala 28’, Chenene 60’

19        19/02/14         A         Swallows       (1-1) W 2-1    Chenene 36’, Ndlovu 51’

20        25/02/14         A         Wits                (1-1) L 2-3      Khumalo 22’, Doutie 84’

21        16/03/14         A         Celtic              (1-0) D 1-1     Niang 3’

22        19/03/14         H         P Stars           (0-1) D 1-1     Phala 62’

23        02/04/14         H         Maritzburg     (1-2) L 1-3      Grobler 7’

2013/14 Absa Premiership fixtures

No       Date                H/A     Opponent

N/A     -                       A         Golden Arrows – Postponed

25        05/04/14         H         Orlando Pirates

26        08/04/14         A         Free State Stars

27        15/04/14         A         Ajax Cape Town

28        19/04/14         H         Bidvest Wits

29        26/04/14         A         Mamelodi Sundowns

30        10/05/14         H         Polokwane City       

League position – 8th

                        P         W        D         L          GF       GA      GD      Pts

Home             12        5          3          4          19        14        +5        18

Away              11        4          4          3          12        13        -1         16

Overall           23        9          7          7          31        27        +4        34

Orlando Pirates

2013/14 Absa Premiership results

No       Date                H/A     Opponent      (HT) Result    Goal scorers

1          08/08/13         H         AmaZulu       (0-1) L 0-1

2          18/09/13         H         Polokwane    (0-0) W 1-0    Mahamutsa 63’

3          26/10/13         A         Chiefs                        (1-1) D 1-1     Erasmus 10’

4          27/11/13         A         Maritzburg     (1-0) W 1-0    Mbesuma 31’

5          30/11/13         H         Celtic              (0-1) L 2-3      Bacela 56’, Jali 90+1’ pen

6          16/12/13         A         P Stars           (3-0) W 3-0    Ntshumayelo 6’, Manyisa 16’, Klate 32’

7          19/12/13         H         U Pretoria      (0-0) W 1-0    Manyisa 53’

8          22/12/13         H         Arrows            (2-1) W 3-1    Jele 13’, Manyisa 25’ 90+5’

9          18/01/14         H         SuperSport    (0-0) L 1-2      Jele 90+1’

10        23/01/14         A         AmaZulu       (0-0) D 1-1     Gcaba 56’

11        27/01/14         H         Ajax                (1-0) W 2-1    Masuku 36’, Matlaba 56’

12        04/02/14         H         Wits                (0-1) W 2-1    Pelembe 56’, Erasmus 73’

13        08/02/14         H         Sundowns    (0-0) L 0-1

14        15/02/14         A         Polokwane    (0-1) L 0-1

15        18/02/14         A         Ajax                (0-0) D 0-0

16        25/02/14         A         Sundowns    (1-0) W 1-0    Masuku 37’

17        01/03/14         H         FS Stars         (0-0) W 2-0    Matlaba 48’, Makola 55’

18        08/03/14         A         U Pretoria      (0-0) L 0-1

19        12/03/14         A         Swallows       (1-0) W 1-0    Erasmus 9’

20        15/03/14         H         Chiefs                        (0-0) L 0-1

21        18/03/19         A         Aces               (1-1) D 1-1     Myeni 23’

22        29/03/14         H         Swallows       (1-0) W 1-0    Segolela 12’

23        02/04/14         H         Aces               (0-0) L 0-1

2013/14 Absa Premiership fixtures

No       Date                H/A     Opponent

N/A     -                       A         Free State Stars – Postponed

25        05/04/14         A         SuperSport United

26        15/04/14         H         Maritzburg United

27        21/04/14         A         Bloemfontein Celtic

28        26/04/14         H         Platinum Stars

29        30/04/14         H         Bidvest Wits

30        10/05/14         A         Golden Arrows

League position – 4th

                        P         W        D         L          GF       GA      GD      Pts

Home             13        7          0          6          15        12        +3        21

Away              10        4          4          2          9          5          +4        16

Overall           23        11        4          8          24        17        +7        37

League standings

Pos     Team                                      P         W        D         L          GF       GA      GD      Pts

1          Kaizer Chiefs                                    23        16        4          3          36        14        +22     52

2          Mamelodi Sundowns          24        15        4          5          43        24        +19     49

3          Bidvest Wits                          22        12        5          5          28        17        +11     41

4          Orlando Pirates                    23        11        4          8          24        17        +7        37

5          Mpumalanga Black Aces   24        10        7          7          28        25        +3        37

6          Platinum Stars                      24        9          8          7          26        25        +1        35

7          AmaZulu                               25        9          8          8          24        30        -6         35

8          SuperSport United               23        9          7          7          31        27        +4        34

9          Bloemfontein Celtic             24        7          12        5          30        28        +2        33

10        Moroka Swallows                 24        8          6          10        27        30        -3         30

11        University of Pretoria           24        8          4          12        21        23        -2         28

12        Ajax Cape Town                   24        7          7          10        21        27        -6         28

13        Maritzburg United                24        7          6          11        28        34        -6         27

14        Free State Stars                   23        5          6          12        22        34        -12      21

15        Polokwane City                    24        5          5          14        24        34        -10      20

16        Golden Arrows                     23        4          1          18        17        41        -24      13

Round fixtures

Friday 04 April 2014

20h00 – Moroka Swallows v Ajax Cape Town – Dobsonville Stadium

Saturday 05 April 2014

15h00 – SuperSport United v Orlando Pirates – Lucas Moripe Stadium

15h00 – Mpumalanga Black Aces v Bidvest Wits – Mbombela Stadium

18h00 – University of Pretoria v Polokwane City – Tuks Stadium

18h00 – AmaZulu v Free State Stars – Moses Mabhida Stadium

20h15 – Kaizer Chiefs v Mamelodi Sundowns – FNB Stadium

Sunday 06 April 2014

15h00 – Bloemfontein Celtic v Platinum Stars – Kaizer Sebothelo Stadium

15h00 – Maritzburg United v Golden Arrows – Harry Gwala Stadium

Club information

SuperSport United

Nickname: Matsatsantsa

Formed: 1994

Major honours: League titles: 3 (2008, 2009, 2010); Top Eight Cup titles: 1 (2004); National Cup titles: 3 (1999, 2005, 2012).

All-time PSL record: (Not including 2013/14 season results)

P         W        D         L          GF       GA      GD      Pts

534     216     173     145     722     546     +176   821

Orlando Pirates

Nickname: The Buccaneers

Formed: 1937

Major honours: League titles: 9 (1971, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1994, 2001, 2003, 2011, 2012); Top Eight Cup titles: 9 (1972, 1974, 1978, 1983, 1993, 1996, 2000, 2010, 2011); League Cup titles: 1 (2011); National Cup titles: 7 (1973, 1974, 1975, 1980, 1988, 1996, 2011); Other cup titles: 6 (1975, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1983, 1992); 1995 African Champions Cup; 1996 African Super Cup.

All-time PSL record: (Not including 2013/14 season results)

P         W        D         L          GF       GA      GD      Pts

534     258     171     105     758     458     +300   945