WESTERN CAPE COPA COCA-COLA PROVINCIAL FINAL WILL SEE SOME PAST WINNERS AND ONE NEW ONE COMPETING

The Western Cape will become the fifth province to identify its champion school in the under-15 OPA Coca-Cola schools football competition when its provincial playoff day takes place at the Zweleni Temba stadium in Worcester on Saturday June 9 (kickoff at 9 am).

The winners on the day will join Masibonisane High School from KwaZulu-Natal; Kabelo Secondary School from Limpopo, Are-Fadimeheng Secondary School from Northwest and Johannesburg Secondary School from Gauteng at the COPA Coca-Cola National Finals, in Johannesburg from July 12 to 14.

Among the schools that will be in action at the finals is Robinvale High School from Atlantis in the West Coast Region.

This is their sixth time year that the school is competing in the COPA Coca-Cola competition, and only the second time they have made it through top the provincial finals.

They reached this stage of the competition in2009, and were knocked out in the semifinals that year.

Their coach, Christopher Samuels, has SAFA level one ,two and three coaching certificates and is a former assistant coach at the Ajax Cape Town Development Academy before coming to the school this year.

He is confident that the team is well prepared for the provincial finals and believes the team captain and striker, Reagen De Vos, is going to do well for them.

“Reagen reads the game well and is a good team motivator. He has an accurate shot and has been part of the Ajax development programme for two years,” Samuels says.

Reagen De Vos says he is happy his team will be playing in the provincial finals because this will give him the opportunity to play against other schools around the province. He sees this as a great platform to meet other inspiring young footballers and he hopes they will learn a lot from one another.

Lukhanyo Primary School from Zwekihle in the Overberg Region are participating in the COPA Coca-Cola for the first time.

Their coach, Michael Manqoba, has been with the team since 2002 and is the sports coordinator at the school.“I am very excited to finally represent his region in the provincial finals because we never played in a tournament of this calibre before and it will be a great experience for the team since they have always only been exposed to playing the schools in our region before,” he says.

Lukhanyo’s goalkeeper, Esihle Bhula is a brilliant shot stopper and distributor and he is going to play a big role in the provincial finals, Manqoba believes.

“Another key player for us will be Odwa Tshisa, a midfielder who reads the game well and is an accurate passer of the ball.”

The schools playing in the Western Cape COPA Coca-Cola provincial finals are: Beaufort West Secondary School (Karoo Region), Imozamoyethu Secondary School (Eden Region), Lukhanyo Primary School (Overberg Region), Robinvale High School (West Coast Region).

The schools that will represent the Winelands Cape Town regions still have to be decided

About COPA Coca-Cola:

         Copa Coca-Cola is run under the auspices of the South African Schools Football Association (SASFA)

·         Coca-Cola started sponsoring Coca-Cola Football Stars in 2005.

·         Between 2005 and 2008 a TV reality element was introduced aimed at finding the top 18 players who would go on to compete internationally.  To keep interests high an elimination process was brought in to reduce players from approximately 70 down to 18 and the public witnessed the trials and tribulations that went into becoming a top football player.

·         In 2009 and 2010 the name changed to bring the tournament in line with Coca-Cola’s global youth strategy to COPA Coca-Cola.  The aim of the tournament remained the same i.e. to look for the top Under-19 school in the country and find the top 18 players who then competed against approximately 13 other African schools in the Copa Coca-Cola finals. 

·         In 2012 COPA Coca-Cola became an Under 15 tournament to align with the Copa Coca-Cola globally. 

·         The tournament starts off at Cluster level (this level is now complete as it happened in January)

·         Regional winners then compete in the Provincial Finals

·         Provincial winners then compete in the National Finals taking place from the 3^rd – 7^th July.

KFC MINI-CRICKET GROWS BY 20 PERCENT AND KFC MINI-CRICKET COACH OF THE YEAR IS ANNOUNCED

The KFC Mini-Cricket programme grew from 83 638 participants in the 2010/11 season to 100 702 in the 2011/12 season, an increase of 20 percent ,which far exceeds the 10 percent target set by KFC and Cricket  SA for its Unions.

KFC partnered with CSA two years ago with the aim of reaching as many children as possible to promote an active and balanced lifestyle.  It is important for kids to develop an active and balanced lifestyle at a young age because it becomes a habit that can be a benefit for a lifetime. 

The increase in participation would not have been possible without the 6 000 or so coaches who manage the programme. Each year KFC Mini-cricket salutes one of these volunteers by naming him or her the KFC Mini-Cricket Coach of the Year. This year that person is Angela Cilliers of the Matatiele district of KwaZulu-Natal.

Cilliers was given this prestigious award in recognition of her passion for the programme and for the boys and girls she coaches. Her leadership, organisational and motivational qualities have been commended in the running of the programme in her district.  She has not been involved for as many years as some of the former winners, but her commitment, quality of her work and the drive to get children leading an active and balanced lifestyle makes her a worthy recipient.

Cilliers, who is a teacher at St Monica's School in Matatiele, says KFC KFC Mini-Cricket is in her blood.

She was responsible for the growth of the KFC Mini-Cricket programme at the previous school she taught - Rivermead Christian Academy – and was instrumental in getting the programme going in the district, a rural area where there were very few sporting opportunities for the young boys and girls.

She remembers her introduction to the programme well. "I was told to run KFC Mini-Cricket at my previous school, although I had no idea what it was all about. I was given a KFC Mini-Cricket booklet and was told to study and run the KFC Mini-Cricket coaching lessons as from the next day.”

“That night I fell in love with the programme. The next day I held my first coaching session and I have never looked back. This is a programme that can teach young students about getting the basics right so that they can become the very best they can be.”

She was appointed the sports co-ordinator at St Monica’s this year and immediately set about introducing KFC Mini-Cricket in the school; she is also busy getting it going in the surrounding rural areas as well.

Cilliers has a Basic Coaching Mini-Cricket (Level 0) qualification and has been involved with the programme since 2009. In that time she has imparted cricket and life skills to hundreds of boys and girls, of which roughly half were girls. She says it has been particularly pleasing that so many girls are now involved.

Looking back over the years of her involvement in the programme, she believes the most memorable moment was when she was selected to attend the KFC Mini-Cricket National Seminar. “This was an awesome privilege for me. You come back from there and just want to persuade every small student to start playing KFC Mini-Cricket,” said Cilliers.

“The past season focused on growing the programme and this upcoming season is about endorsing the active and balanced lifestyle message and informing the public why KFC is so passionate about this programme” commented Dave Timm, Chief Marketing Officer of KFC

NKUNZIMBINI JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL OUTSHINE BARKERVILLE PRIMARY SCHOOL

The list of nine schools that will be playing in the 2012 Danone Nations Cup National Finals in Mamelodi on June 23 will be finalised this weekend when the Gauteng finals take place.

The second-last piece of the puzzle fell into place last Saturday when Nkuzimbini Junior Secondary School from Ngqeleni, a remote rural settlement near Mthatha in the OR Tambo Region won the Eastern Cape Danone Nations Cup provincial final. Nkunzimbini Junior Secondary School beat Caley Primary School on penalties after the sides were locked on 0-0 at the end of  regulation time.

Nkunzimbini will now be playing for the national title which carries with it a chance to represent South Africa in the World Finals in Warsaw, Poland, in September.

The team that represented the nation at last year’s World Finals, Barkerville Primary, were from the Eastern Cape Province. They were at the provincial finals again this year, but did not make it through.

This is just their second time in the Danone Nations Cup. They lost to Barkerville in last year’s provincial final. Team coach Justice Nqiwa says for him the Danone Nations Cup is not about winning but about the experience the boys are going to have. “Being there will show them that there are plenty of other opportunities out there and their circumstances should not stand in the way of who they can be,” he says.

“I want them to enjoy themselves and feel what it is like to be young and to dream of endless possibilities. Even though they might not win the tournament and go to Poland I believe that just travelling to Gauteng can open doors for some of them. This will be their first trip outside Eastern Cape for all of the players.”

Nqiwa singles out Abulele Sotshononda and Lwazi Mabokela as his key players.  “Sotshononda is a right wing who has pace and who can dribble and pass well. Mabokela is a solid defender who can make good runs from the back. He has good ball control and clears dangerous balls at the back extremely well.”

This Saturday’s winner from the Gauteng provincial finals will join Nkuzimbini Junior Secondary, Chakaza Primary School from Mpumalanga, Isinamumva Primary School from KwaZulu-Natal, Atamela Primary School from North West, Kgwahlele Primary School from Limpopo, Bochabela Primary School from Free State, Keidebees Primary School from Northern Cape and AH Barnard Primary school from Western Cape at the Danone Nations Cup national Finals in Mamelodi on June 23 to play off for the South African title.

EASTERN CAPE RESULTS

POOL A

Imbasa Primary School

Nkunzimbini Junior Secondary School

Backerville Primary School

Ntabelanga Primary School

POOL B

Bongweni Primary School

Caley Primary School

Maruping Primary School

Imbasa Primary School 0 vs Nkuzimbini Junior Secondary School 1

Barkerville Primary School 1 vs Ntabelanga Primary School 0

Bongweni Primary School 0 (1) vs Caley Primary School 0 (3)

Imbasa Primary School 0 (7) vs Barkerville Primary School 0 (6)

Nkunzimbini Junior Secondary School 2 vs  Ntabelanga Primary School 1

Caley Primary School 1 vs Maruping Primary School 0

Ntabenga Primary School 1 vs Imbasa Primary School 0

Barckerville Primary School 0 (3) vs Nkuzimbini Junior Secondary School 0 (2)

Maruping Primary School 0 vs Bongweni Primary School 1

FINAL

Nkunzimbini Junior Secondary School 0 (3) vs  Caley Primary School 0 (2)

GAUTENG TO HOST THE LAST DANONE NATIONS CUP PROVINCIAL FINALS

Gauteng will host the last 2012 Danone Nations Cup provincial final at Central Grounds in Mamelodi  on June 23, kick-off at 9am.  The winner will join the other 8 provincial winners in the National Finals to determine the team that will represent South Africa at the 40-nations World Finals in Warsaw, Poland in September.

Defending Gauteng champions, Sapebuso Primary School, from Emzimhlophe in Orlando West, Soweto will be representing Johannesburg West.  Last year was the team’s first appearance in the competition and they managed to get all the way to the semifinals.

Sapebuso coach Bhekumuzi Kheswa admits that the Danone Nations Cup is the highlight of their sports calendar. “It gives our youngsters an experience of a lifetime. They get the opportunity to learn a lot in terms of different styles of playing football by competing with different schools from different areas. This will help them become skilful players in the near future,” he says.

Bhekumuzi singled out his goalkeeper Tebogo Mosetlhe as a key player. “He made brilliant saves in the regional games including three penalties in the regional final.

Newcomers, Tsosoloso Special School from Soshanguve in Tshwane North Region, are looking forward to the provincial finals.  “Our school was formed purely to accommodate abandoned and abused children so every youngster has experienced extreme hardship. I have really talented players and competing in a tournament of this magnitude will be an eye opener and will do the youngsters the world of good and build up their confidence,” said coach Mohapi Nkutshoeu.

Nkutshoeu will be looking to Michael Afrika, who scored the winning goal in the regional final to do the business for the team again, while midfielder Bobby Afrika, a great ball distributor, is another key player.

The schools participating in the Gauteng DanoneNations Cup finals today are:

Sunnyside Primary School (Gauteng North), Tsosoloso Special School (Tshwane North), Sapebuso Primary School (Johannesburg Wes), Ivory Park Primary School (Johannesburg East), FD Roosevelt Primary School (Johannesburg North), Qhoweng Primary School (Sedibeng West), Sonqoba Primary School (Ekurhuleni South), Benoni West Primary School (Ekurhuleni North).

The full list of qualifiers for the National finals so far is:

Mpumalanga - Chakaza Primary School                          

KwaZulu – Natal - Sinamuva Primary School                  

North West- Atamela Primary School                             

Limpopo- Kwahlele Primary School                 

Free State - Bochabela Primary School                           

Northern Cape – Keidebees

Western Cape - AH Barnard Primary School                 

Eastern Cape - Nkunzimbini Primary School