North West is the last province to stage their Kay Motsepe Schools Cup Provincial Finals

The under-19 Kay Motspe Schools Cup provincial finals are near completion with the North West province being the last to host their finals taking place at the Marikana Sports Ground in Rustenburg on Friday, 20^th  September.

There will be four regional finalists competing for the two spots in the National Finals, with the schools that finish first and second automatically qualifying. Thuso Thebe High School (Ganyesa district), Sol Plaatjie (Ngaka Modiri Molema district), Eletsa Secondary School (Madibeng) and Kirang Ka Natla Secondary School (Stilfontein)

Eletsa Secondary School, from the Bojanala district, has been competing in the Kay Motsepe Schools Cup, sponsored by the Motsepe Foundation and Sanlam, since 2010 managing to finish in third place in 2010 and again in 2017.   

Manager and coach, Daniel Mhlongo is also a teacher at the school.  His love of the beautiful game spurred him to get his SAFA referee certificate. He went on to get a SAFA Introductory coaching certificate and he manages the Young Zebra Football Team that competes in the ABC Motsepe League, so he is well qualified to get the boys to the national finals again.

Eletsa’s road to the provincial finals was highly successful as they won every game.  At circuit level they beat Michakgasi Secondary 2-0, Klipgat High 1-0, Mchakgasi 2-0 andMadibatoloane 2-0. In the district round they beat Rustenburg High 1-0, Moses Kotwane 2-0, Moretele Secondary 1-0.

“I have an excellent team this year with three of our players - Jabulani Maseko, Moloto Phologelo and Fhurani Evans - being identified by the Mamelodi Sundown scouts,” Mhlongo said. “We will be happy to win the provincials however our plan is to win the Nationals as we would like to take home the prize money to rebuild some of our school structures.”

Eletsa is working hard at preparing for the provincial finals. “We train five times a week and play friendly games within the area,” Mhlongo said. “We all know that it will be a tough competition, but we can’t lose the provincial title.”

The tournament is run under the auspices of the South African Football Association (SAFA) together with the Department of Basic Education (DBE).

The national finals promise to be spectacular with 18 teams competing for the ultimate prize of R1million, making the Kay Motsepe Schools Cup, sponsored by the Motsepe Foundation and Sanlam, the competition with the biggest prize money in Africa at under-19 level.  The runners-up will take home R600 000, third place and fourth place finishers get R500 000 and R400 000 respectively.  On top of this the nine Provincial winners will each receive R100 000.  The winnings are not handed over in cash but spent on legacy projects identified by the winning schools.

PROVINCIAL FINAL WINNERS TO DATE:

PROVINCE/PF VENUE	DATE	WINNERS	REGION
Western Province Gaansbaai	03-Aug-19	WINNER:  John Ramsay High School	Bishop Lavis Cape Town
Western Province Gaansbaai	03-Aug-19	RUNNER-UP:  Beauford West Secondary School	Beaufort West Great Karoo Region
Eastern Cape Queenstown	10-Aug-19	WINNER:  Maria Louw Senior Secondary School  (Queenstown)	Queenstown Enoch Mgijima Municipality
Eastern Cape Queenstown	10-Aug-19	RUNNER-UP:   Jojo Senior Secondary	Mount Ayliff Alfred Nzo Municipality
Northern Cape Upington	17-Aug	WINNER:  Okiep HS	Okiep Springbok Municipality
Northern Cape Upington	17-Aug	RUNNER-Up:  Blinkklip HS	Posmasburg ZF Mgcawu Municipality
Limpopo Polokwane	24-Aug-19	WINNER:  Tshikota High School	Tshikota (Louis Trichardt) Vhembe Municipality
Limpopo Polokwane	24-Aug-19	RUNNER-UP: Ditlalemeso Secondary School	Mankweng (Turfloop) Capricorn District
Gauteng Nigel	31-Aug-19	WINNER:  Rosina Sedibane	Laudium, Centurion Tshwane
Gauteng Nigel	31-Aug-19	RUNNER-UP:  Clapham HS	Queenswood, Pretoria Tshwane
KZN DURBAN	7-Sept-19	WINNER:  Dr JL Dube High School	KwaMashu Emlanjeni Durban
KZN DURBAN	7-Sept-19	RUNNER-UP:  Mount Currie Senior Secondary School	Kokstad Harry Gwala District

Sebetwane Secondary School surprise winner of the North West Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup Provincial Finals

Success at last! It has taken Sebetwane Secondary School five years to finally win the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup North West provincial finals.  The win means R 100 000 in prize money for the school, and a place at next month’s national finals. Sebetwane Secondary beat Freedom Park High School in the final match of the day.

Ike Lebatle, the team coach, says the school, and the entire village they are located in are celebrating their victory and the principal gave the team an hour off to go around the school and celebrate with their school mates. “Last Saturday we even went out to the village to celebrate with the community because they have been showing us support all the time,” he said.

Lebatle says it has not been decided what the prize money will be spend on. “The school will have to sit with the School Governing Body and they will decide,” he said, “but I’m sure the money will go into sports projects. The school does not have a proper soccer field, we need to build one from scratch.”

Sol Plaatje Secondary School, the defending Champions, was the schools toughest opponents said Lebatle.  “Before the tournament we spoke about defeating Sol Plaatje and it was our ultimate goal and we were happy that we did that.”

The team has begun preparations of the national finals. “The celebrations are over and the hard work has begun,” Lebatle said. “We train 4 times a week and play a friendly match every Saturday. I am working hand in hand with other coaches, to help me with developing our technique. We know that there will be tough competition, so we are covering all bases.”

Lebatle is motivating his players with the thought of winning the R1 million first prize; “The boys must leave the school for the national finals knowing that a soccer field is being built and that they were the ones that made it happen. Their names will be forever remembered in the school. ”

Provincial Final Results

Sebetwane (4)    VS Maitemogelo (2)

Freedom Park (1) VS Sol Plaatje (3)

Sol Plaatje (3) VS Sebetwane (4)

Maitemogelo (2) VS Freedom Park (1)

Freedom Park (1) VS Sebetwane (4)

Sol Plaatje (3) VS Maitemogelo (2)

Final Log Positions

 Sebetwane Secondary School

Freedom Park Secondary School

Maitemogelo Secondary School

Sol Plaatje Secondary School

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.

A NORTH WEST SANLAM KAY MOTSEPE SCHOOLS CUP PROVINCIAL CONTENDER WILL WIN R100 000 ON SATURDAY AND A CHANCE TO COMPETE FOR THE R1 MILLION AS THE NATIONAL CHAMPION

The North West provincial contenders for the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup will be battling it out at the Montshiwa Stadium in Mafikeng on Saturday June 23, starting at 9am.The schools participating are the winners of the regional playoff competitions that have been going on in the province for the last three months.  The winning school gets R100 000 and a place at the National Finals.

Among the contenders for the title is Eletsa Secondary School from Letlhabile Township near Brits in the Bojanala Region. This is the sixth time the school is participating in the tournament and the third time they have made it through to the provincial finals.

Eletsa coach, Goodman Ramakobye, has been with the school team since 2008. He says that even though he still has five players from last year’s team, they need to work on their fitness levels to be consistent throughout the day on Saturday.“It was fitness that let us down last year,” he says.

According to Ramakobye, defender FanaSibande, who was part of last year’s team, is a key player for them. “He defends well and also supplies the strikers with good crosses.” Eletsa’s goalkeeper, Thabiso Marima, is a good team motivator who saved two penalties in the regional finals.

Also in contention on Saturday is Gaopalelwe Secondary School from Boitumelong near Bloemhof in the Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati Region. This will be the school’s fourth time in the competition and the first time they have made it through to the provincial finals. Coach Josias Koalane is excited to finally represent his region at the provincials. He believes this will be a great experience as they have only been exposed to playing with their regional schools.

He will be depending on striker Moleleji Kadi, the team’s current top goal scorer with 12 goals, to do the business for them on Saturday.

But the team to beat will be current North West champions, Sol Plaatje.  Coach Clifford Shale, who has a South African Football Association (SAFA) Level 1 coaching certificate, said:  “I have six players who competed in the competition last year, but the team need to work on their mental awareness and be able to deliver under pressure because they lose focus very easily and lose momentum once they have conceded a goal. I have been working on this by playing friendly matches with the local football academies and allowing them to attend football classes every Wednesday.”

The final contender on Saturday is Seiphemelo Secondary School who won the provincial title in 2010.

The winners and runners-up on Saturday will both be travelling to Bloemfontein from October 2 to 6 where

they will meet the top two sides of the other eight provinces to compete for the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup National title and the R1 million that goes with it.

2011 COPA COCA-COLA RUNNER-UP GET THEIR WISHES FULFILLED

For the learners at Sol Plaatje Secondary School in Mmabatho it could have appeared as if Youth Day was celebrated earlier than June 16, but the celebrations were in line with the unveiling of goods purchased for the school as runners-up in the 2011 Copa Coca-Cola soccer tournament for the Under-18’s.

The prize money amounted to R100 000 in goods for the school and the wish list included a new treadmill, pacer bike, power stack, tracksuits, soccer and netball kits, and an overhead projector. This equipment, team manager Clifford Shale explains, will be used for the school’s new gym. Unlike many schools that only allow athletes to make use of its facilities, this gym will be accessible to every learner and teacher at the school.

“At Sol Plaatje Secondary School, we believe in the saying that a healthy mind dwells in a healthy body,” says Clifford Shale. “We have always emphasised the need for exercise and healthy food, and it is great to be able to put our money where our mouth is by now having our own gym that everyone at our school will be able to access.”

But there is more to Copa Coca-Cola than having a wish list come true. The tournament serves to develop as well as showcase new talent, which can, hopefully, be channelled to the professional leagues and the national team. “Copa Coca-Cola creates the platform for high school players interested in a professional football career to be seen by scouts from SAFA as well as the PSL and First Division teams,” Themba Nobanda, Brand Manager of Coca-Cola South Africa explains. “Coca-Cola is committed to nurturing grassroots talent  towards South Africa’s legacy, while encouraging an active lifestyle among the youth.”

Over the years, Copa Coca-Cola has unearthed a number of youngsters that have gone on to become professional players, like Andile Jali currently at Orlando Pirates and also a Bafana Bafana player.  Mandla Masango of Kaizer Chiefs is also a Copa Coca-Cola graduate. This year, a number of Sol Plaatje players have been identified by scouts as being promising young footballers that can soon be playing in the professional realm – look out for them in the upcoming seasons. 

Copa Coca-Cola was a very exciting tournament for both the coach and the team of Sol Plaatje, Shale reflects. The squad, having doubted in their ability to perform in the tournament earlier on, learned that they should always believe in themselves. The boys from North West Province surely proved the difference it makes to believe in its capabilities when it narrowly lost against overall winners HTS Louis Botha in the final in Kimberley.

National Copa Coca-Cola winners HTS Louis Botha pocketed R150 000, while third placed Western Cape Sports School take R60 000 worth of school and sport equipment. This is over and above the R40 000 that each Provincial winner pocketed earlier in the tournament.

Sol Plaatje Secondary School is already looking forward to next year’s competition, Shale says. “There is only one position better than second - and that is number one,” he comments. “And we will definitely be back again next year to try and win the cup. It is a great tournament with a very high standard of play, and the way the team sees their work on the field translate into something good for the school is a very good life lesson.”

(L-R)Amelda Gouws from Coca-Cola, School Coach Mr Shale, Sol Plaatje SS Principal Mrs Kanagaratham and SASFA North West NEC Ms Mathibela

Sol Plaatje Secondary School Soccer Team during thier handover Ceremony

Pictures From The Sanlam Kay Motsepe Cup Provincial Finals North West

There is a video montage of all the pictures on http://www.youtube.com/user/Intunecom. If you would like any of he other pictures you can send us a message and we will send you the picture that you would like. All photos are curtesy of Back Page Pictures.

Sol Plaatjies High School won the tournament.

Sol Plaatjie Secondary School wins the North West Sanlam Kay Motsepe Provincial Finals

North West hosted the third Provincial Finals of the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup, at the Wonderkop stadium in Rustenburg. The provincial winner, Sol Plaatje Secondary School walked away with R100 000 worth of school and sport equipment.    

About the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup:

The Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup is an initiative co-funded by Sanlam, the Ubuntu-Botho Community Development Trust and the Motsepe Family Foundation. It the biggest high school soccer tournament in South Africa and is open to all high schools including rural, public, private and independent schools. The National winning school will walk away with R1 million with R600 000, R500 000 and R400 000, for the second, third and fourth placed schools respectively. Each Provincial winners gets an additional R100 000. Prize money is used to fund legacy projects identified by the School.

NW-SOL PLAATJE SEC & ELETSA HIGH IN THE FINALS

NW-SANLAM KAY MOTSEPE SCHOOLS CUP CHAMPIONS SOL PLAATJE SEC SCHOOL