Outsider causes an upset to win the Mpumalanga Danone Nations Cup Provincial Final

Nancy Shiba Primary School from Witbank, in the Nkangala district, are the 2016 Mpumalanga under-12 Danone Nations Cup provincial soccer champions, having beaten the 2013 national champions, and 2014 and 2015 provincial champions, Daniye Primary School in the final last weekend.  Nancy Shiba will now compete in the National Finals taking place at Reiger Park in Gauteng on June 25^th.

Daniye went into the tournament as favourites and won all their league matches, which included beating Nancy Shiba 1 – 0 in the first game of the day.  The teams met again in the final match and Nancy Shiba came back strongly and managed to beat the champions 2 – 0.

“Daniye Primary were our biggest competition at the provincials,” said coach Khulekani Sikhakhani. “Our loss in the opening game unsettled my boys, but we were able to get the team to see it as just another game and to focus on winning the next set of games, which we did.  When we knew that we would face Daniye again in the final we were ready for the challenge.  I was pleased to see that my boys kept their composure and stuck to the game plan.  The more we outsmarted them the more the Daniye team lost focus as they were complacent and not expecting us to beat them.”

Nancy Shiba competed in the tournament for the first time last year but they did not get beyond the district stage.

Team manager, Motlatsi Mthembu, who has no formal development coaching, explained why he entered the team into the tournament.  “I gain my knowledge on youth development via tutorials from David Clarke website;  Better Soccer Coaching.  In the programme it stresses how important it is for kids to get match practice and to make sure they compete in tournaments with a big incentive attached to get them used to playing competitively and the Danone Nations Cup tics all the boxes.”

The tournament builds confidence, Mthembu believes. “Most of the players are shy and reserved. They need to build their confidence so that they can grow up to be young men who know what they want in life and have the ambition to do what their hearts desire.”

Mthembu says he had an excellent team this year. “Our success was due to the talented players, three specifically, who played a major part in our win. I knew I had a talented group last year and have nurtured them for the past 12 months in preparation for this year’s Danone Nations Cup. We have an excellent coach and together we have prepared them mentally and physically and their skills have improved,” he said.

The team came into the tournament well prepared.  Coach Sikhakhani, said that they had scoured the internet to find video’s of past games.  “We did our home work,” he said.  “We found plenty of world final games on youtube and noted the high level of football.”

“We are going into the nationals with little experience but we have the knowledge which will stand us in good stead,” Sikhakhani said.

 The results of the provincial playoffs were:

1. Nancy Shiba PS 0 vs. Daniye PS 1

2. Sandzile PS 3 vs. Igugulabasha  PS 0

3. Sandzile PS 0 vs. Nancy Shiba PS 1

4. Daniye PS 4 vs. Igugulabasha 0

5. Igugulabasha PS 0 vs. Nancy Shiba PS 4

6. Daniye PS 2 vs. Sandzile PS 1

7. Final: Daniye PS 0 vs. Nancy Shiba 2

 

Kwa-Zulu Natal is next to hold their u-12 Danone Nations Cup Provincial Finals

The KwaZulu-Natal provincial finals of the under-12 Danone nations Cup soccer tournament will be held at the Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium in Claremont on Saturday 14th May.

Among the 12 finalists are schools who have been regular participants at provincial level; some who have been playing in the tournament for years without reaching this level before; and a few who are entering the competition for the first time this year.

Zandile Primary School from Umlazi, Durban has been competing in the tournament since 2012, but this is the first time they have reached the provincial finals.

Coach, Siya Shangashe, is from outside the school and is happy that at last they have made it to the provincials. “This is a great achievement for us and the atmosphere at the school is electrifying. The team was acknowledged at assembly and the choir sang a special song for them to mark their achievement.”

Shangashe said that he is now focusing on the psyche of the players. “It isn’t easy dealing with young players. They tend to lose confidence if they don’t excel in a game. It is important to encourage kids all the time.”

Shangashe has no coaching qualifications, nor did he play the game at a high level. He does run a local soccer team called Strikers FC in his area in Umlazi where he coaches under-12, 13 and 15 players.

He tries to learn more about the game by watching teams like Man United City and Barcelona, and tries to teach the skill she sees to his team.

There are two players in the team that the coach hopes will make in impact at the provincials. They are defender, Wonderboy Dlamini, who blocks with determination; and midfielder, Kwanele Nyawose, who has been with the team since he was 10 and has a lot of experience in the tournament.

Ophuzane Primary School from Zululand played in the KZN provincial finals in the 2010, 2011 and 2012 but has never made it to the national finals.  The closest they have come is provincial runners up in 2011.

Bheki Buthelezi, the team manager and coach Azaria Ndwed are both teachers at the school and have been working well together for a long time.

Ndwedwe, like most of the coaches at this level, has no formal coaching education and learns from reading books on development as well as by watching local PSL games on TV.

He finds the lack of confidence of the players his main concern. “The players were surprised to be told that we topped the log and are in the provincial finals,” he said.

A lack of confidence and self-belief seems to a common problem among the schools playing in the competition. Sindawonye Primary School coach, Clifford Mnasi, has found the same thing.

Sindawonye are competing in the Danone Nations Cup for the first time and Mnasi is surprised his team has made it this far in their first year.

“Preparations are going well but the kids are nervous as they know that competing in the provincials will be a different experience,” he said.  “They come from a rural area so they don’t have enough facilities nor are there many soccer tournaments so it will be a first for them.”

Mnasi is a teacher at the school with no formal coaching qualifications. He is focussing on attack ahead of the provincials. “They need to focus more on their execution when it comes to scoring, distributing the ball fast to their teammates and controlling the ball,” he said.

The schools participating in the KwaZulu-Natal provincial finals are:

1.       Sisonke district: Sindawonye Primary School

2.       Zululand district: Ophuzane Primary School

3.       UMzinyathi district: Ithaka Primary School

4.       Pinetown district: Kastruba Gandhi

5.       UThungulu district: Snaye Primary School

6.       UMkhanyakude district: Dumile Primary School

7.       ILembe district: Dinuphuzo Primary School

8.       Amajuba district: Sipheni Senior School

9.       Uthukela district: Inkunzi Primary School

10.   UMgungundlovu district: Mthethomusha Primary School

11.   UMlazi district : Zandile Primary School

12.   Ugu district: Delihlazo Primary School

 

Gauteng schools training for the Danone Nations Cup soccer tournament

 

The local Gauteng under-12 Danone Nations Cup soccer games are about to get under way and a school that will be competing for the first time is Mondeor Primary School from the Central Johannesburg district.

Their entry is something of a coup for the competition as Mondeor is an established school with a strong sporting tradition. It is 61 years old and has 1 100 pupils. Apart from soccer, they play netball, cricket, 7-a-side rugby, cross country, athletics and tennis at the school.

Soccer has always been a high priority sport at the school which has produced some successful players such as the current Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper, Read Pieters.

Many of the players are with soccer clubs, which has made it hard for the coach, Lucas Nduna, to select a final squad as he has so many good players to choose from. The tournament rules say that the squad can only contain 12 players, so many have been left out, which hasn’t made Nduna very popular.  “It’s a high profile tournament that everyone wants to play in,” he said, “but I had to make a choice.”

This is the coach’s first year at the school, where he is a physical education teacher. He runs a local club called Mondeor Rangers and 6 of the players in the team are from there.

Nduna believes that hard work is the fundamental quality of all top players in any sport. “You have to put the work in if you want to progress and get better. Working hard during a team training session is a given. The top players also spend hours on their own perfecting the touch and the feel of the ball,” he said.

Meanwhile Ditawama Primary from Orlando East will be competing in the Johannesburg North district of the competition for the third year.

They have never managed to get past the cluster level before, but their coach, Victor Makhetha is up for the challenge.

His background is in special needs education and teaching in the mainstream has been quite an adaptation for him.

His team has players who are new to soccer and are still learning the basic. He says he is treating this year as if it is the school’s first time in the competition. “We are starting afresh and are determined to do better that we have in the past,” he said. “Tournaments like the Danone Nations Cup are important because they help in developing player skills. These days most kids don’t have much too look forward to, so some think they have to join bad company in order for them to be liked or popular. Danone cares about the community. I hope they will continue with their amazing contribution to soccer,” he said.

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

 

Danone Nations Cup football kick's 0ff in Ekurhuleni

The under-12 Danone Nations Cup provincial finals will take place at Reiger Park in Boksburg on June 11, and across the country the process to identify the nine qualifying schools is under way.

Gauteng is one of the largest provinces in terms of numbers of schools participating and the Ekurhuleni North and South regions are about to kick-off their cluster-level qualifying matches.

A school that will be competing in the tournament for the first time this year is Chief Luthuli Primary from Daveyton in Ekurhuleni South.  The school opened its doors seven years ago and until this year sport was played but not at a competitive level – that was until new coach, Claude Mathuba, took over.

He is not new to the Danone Nations Cup having coached Ivory Park Primary in the 2012 and 2013 Danone Nations Cup competitions – taking that school to the provincial finals in 2012.

“I saw the difference the Danone Nations Cup made to the players from my previous school in terms of confidence and how this impacted on their academics and now want to do the same at Chief Luthuli. That’s why I entered them into the competition this year.”

The team has been selected and the coach is happy. “I chose boys who have some club experience who understand the pressure that comes with playing in tournaments,” he said.

“I am working on the strikers and their finishing. They need to see the opportunity and take the risk. Far too many strikers get cold feet and pass the ball, missing the opportunity.”

Albertina Sisulu Primary from Thembisa will be competing in the Ekurhuleni North district.  The school has been participating in the Danone Nations Cup since 2013 but has not managed to get past the district level so far. 

Their coach, Gridwell Mohubedu has been coaching at the school since 2013 and is a former Benoni United player.

He says that while he knows the boys want to get to the provincial finals, his focus is on education (he teaches maths, social science and biology).

”They won’t get far without a good education,” he says. “I tell the boys they must look up to players like Lehlohonolo Majoro, currently at Orlando Pirates, who has a degree in Radiology, Daine Klate (SuperSport United) who has a degree in Financial Accounting and Tefu Mashamaite (currently competing in the USA) who has a degree in Political Science. They are the role models young players should be following.”

Mohubedi believes a good player needs to use his educational skills to be able to anticipate other players and the ball. ”You need to be a lateral thinker and problem solver to be a good player.”

Katlehong-based Monde Primary School will be playing in the Ekurhuleni South district. They have been competing since 2013 with the same manager, Nondumiso Ndlagisa and coach, Jabulani William Mthembu, but have never made it past district level.

Mthembu is well qualified: he has a SAFA level 1 coaching certificate and has Coaching 1, 2 and 3 and life skills from the Netherlands Soccer Association and played for Benoni United. He is an external coach that comes to assist with soccer at the school.

“As an outsider, it’s important to assess the behaviour of the players. If a child does not behave in class this will spread onto the football field and he can become disruptive,” he says.

“So I have only selected players that do well academically, are disciplined and already have a basic knowledge of the sport. In this way we hope to make it to the provincial level.”