Danone Nations Cup provincial finals are here

It is time again for the provincial finals of the Danone Nations Cup and the five district winners are geared to contest for the provincial title on Saturday at the school grounds of Hoërskool Noorderland.
The teams to be seen in action are experienced 2016 national champions, Benny’s Sports Development Academy from Vhembe, Letjatji Primary School from Capricorn, Mopani districts’ Miragoma Primary School and Kgagudi Primary School representing Sekhukhune. The representatives of the Waterberg District will be announced today (Thursday).
Although Benny’s Sports Academy will go into the tournament as favourites Letjatji Primary from Ga-Madisha Leola village, Zebediela is ready to challenge them for the title.
It has taken ten years for Letjatji to make it to the provincial finals but new coach, Frans Lechaba, said that he has an excellent group of players this year that can produce magic on the field of play and could well cause an upset on Saturday.
He has no coaching qualifications but played professional football for ICL Birds Football Club in the former Bophuthatswana from 1988 to 1990, which has proved helpful in youth coaching.
Lechaba joined Letjatji in 2016. He started preparing the current team back in 2017 by arranging a host of practise matches with local clubs to get them accustomed to competitive football. “Benny’s Sports Development Academy will be our biggest competition at the provincial finals. They were the first Limpopo team to represent South Africa at the world finals and they always have a good team, but we are ready and excited to play against them. They are an academy and they have an excellent reputation, so I know we can also learn from them.”
Letjatji is in a rural area and Lechaba believes that playing in the Danone Nations Cup is extremely important for the children. “I want to use the tournament as a means to teach kids to set goals and work in teams which therefore teaches them to trust each other,” Letjatji said.
“With Danone as the sponsor we are also using this opportunity to teach all the youth in the school the importance of developing proper eating habits. I am looking forward to the finals and seeing what talent is available in the province,” concluded Letjatji.
Gates open on Saturday at 9:00, entrance is free with first kick-off at 10:00.

Story: Herbert Rachuene
>>herbert.observer@gmail.com