admin
This is the biggest junior soccer tournament in the country with over 4000 teams having taken part from the preliminaries which were played at provincial level.
Coca-Cola senior franchise manager Mona Karingi disclosed that 16 players would be selected for the tour of South Africa which runs from 28 August-8 September.
However, the girls will not travel to South Africa as there are no teams to play the against.
Winners in the girls’ category will pocket $3 000 with the runners-up getting $2 500.
The team that finishes third is guaranteed of $2 500 and the fourth placed $1 500.
The most disciplined team will get $700.
In the boys’ category the winners will pocket $6 500, runners-up $5 500, third placed $3 500 and $2 500 for the team that finishes fourth.
Coca-Cola will pay the most disciplined team $1 500. The other participating teams will walk away with $1 200 in the boys’ section and the girls $1 000.
There will also be individual player awards.
Yesterday, the organisers revealed that Hwange coach, Tennant Chilumba, who was last year’s journalists’ choice for the Coach of the Year award, Dynamos legend Moses Chunga, Zimbabwe’s best export so far, Peter Ndlovu, former AmaZulu and Highlanders anchorman Mkhuphali Masuku and Onai Chingawo will be part of the selection panel for individual awards.
The tournament yesterday received a thumbs up from former Warriors captain Benjani Mwaruwari.
He said he would give organisers a tracksuit for the best player and football boots to go to the top goalscorer of the event.
Meanwhile, Matabeleland South representatives in this year’s finals, Mzingwane High School, yesterday said they were going to be gunning for their first triumph in the prestigious tournament in Victoria Falls.
The head coach Bekezela Mavundla was upbeat that his team has what it takes to win this year’s boys’ title.
“We are going to Mosi-oa-Tunya looking at nothing less than winning the tournament. I mean we have a good crop of players and the boys are playing some great football. We however will take each game seriously and negotiate our way step by step hopefully to the finals.
“We have been drawn with the defending champions Manunure and Centenary High School from Mashonaland Central and I think we have the team to upset the defending champions and we are not cowards. If we dethrone the defending champions in the group stages then we will be in a good position to go all the way although I have to say I have been stressing to my team that it will not be any easy task,” Mavundla said.
He said their captain Innocent Chifamba was a good leader who would be a vital cog for his team with Glenn Tande who went to Chelsea last year as part of the Copa Coca-Cola Dream Team.
Mavundla said when the going gets tough he could rely on the two players to produce their magic and turn the tables. Chifamba has lethal deadball skills while Tande can play in any position on the pitch and is always a menace to defenders when thrust into attack.
Online Reporter