It looks as if the future is bright for Butterworth-based FC Tshabalala’s youth development teams.
This was evident when FC Tshabalala’s u/13 and u/15 teams progressed to the final stages of the Mavuso “Scara” Malangeni Memorial Tournament at Msobomvu Sports Ground over the weekend.
Both teams competed in this annual tournament over the past two weekends and managed to survive the stages until the final round.
The u/13 event began with 10 teams competing.
FC Tshabalala, Peace Makers, Young Lions United and Fingo United were the four teams that managed to reach the semi-finals.
On Saturday, at the Msobomvu sports ground, Fingo United defeated Peace Makers 1-0 in the first semi-final match.
In the second game, FC Tshabalala won 1-0 against Young Lions United to book their place in the final, which will be played this weekend at the same venue.
In the u/15 tournament, FC Tshabalala’s team punished Fingo United 2-0 in the first semi-finals and Montego FC humiliated Might Heroes FC 5-0 in the second semi-final.
The two winning teams will play in the final this Saturday at Msobomvu sports ground, near Butterworth town.
In the u/15 event, there were 12 teams competing. The team that wins the final will receive trophies, gold medals, and soccer balls, while the runners-up will receive silver medals and soccer balls.
The main aim of the event is to celebrate the former boss of FC Tshabalala, Mavuso “Scara” Malangeni, who played a huge role in a local sports development around Mnquma areas.
Earlier this month, the senior team event was won by FC Tshabalala, when they defeated Peace Makers in the final 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out, after they played to a 1-1 draw during regulation time.
Now, we will wait to see whether their junior teams will follow suit and win the finals on Saturday. All the teams who were participating in this tournament play in the Mnquma Local Football Association, which is their promotion league.
