COSAFA Legacy Women’s Championships organising committee member, Francis Makonese, was impressed by the performance, hard work and determination shown by the u/15 girls this weekend during the COSAFA tournament held at Mthatha Stadium.
Ayakha Stars Ladies were crowned the champions of the tournament after beating Nothintwa Ladies 3-0 in the final on Sunday.
Makonese said that COSAFA was pleased with the help they received from SAFA and the commitment shown to u/15 women’s development.
“We are also happy with the way coaches are developing players and we are looking forward for more development in Mthatha.
“We are committed to women’s football development for u/15, so once we do introspection with SAFA here, we will see how best we can contribute more to women’s football in Mthatha and bring the tournament here again.”
Ayakha Stars Ladies’ head coach, Ayakha Gqoboka, admitted that the final against Nothintwa Ladies was not easy.
“Nothintwa’s defence was good, but I told the players to switch on (turn up the pressure) and that helped us a lot to secure the three goals.
“We are appreciative of this development tournament and hopeful it will not end today.”
The game was goalless at half-time, but in the second half, Ayakha Stars managed to penetrate the Nothintwa defence and scored three goals.
Meanwhile, Nothintwa Ladies’ head coach, Mandla Mbenyana, has applauded his girls for their outstanding performance to reach the final even though the majority of them were playing football for the first time.
“We never prepared for this tournament. We’ve achieved a lot by reaching a final. They proved that they can play football,” he said.
Despite losing the final match, Nothintwa Ladies’ player, Aseza Mhaga, walked away with the player of the tournament award.
Milisa Mhaga of Nothintwa also received the goalkeeper of the tournament trophy, while the champions walked away with the gold medals and top goal scorer.
The tournament started on Saturday, September 18, and ended on Sunday, September 19, with eight teams participating.
The tournament was organised by COSAFA, together with SAFA OR Tambo Region, with the SAFA president, Sandile Nowalaza, among the dignitaries.
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