IberCup winners crowned, champions’ reactions
After five days of action in the inaugural IberCup South Africa, the champions of the different age groups were crowned on Monday at the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) AW Muller Stadium.
Many of South Africa’s top teams were joined by global household names, like Paris Saint-Germain F.C, PSV Eindhoven, and Benfica.
Paris Saint-Germain – 2010 age group champions
In the highly anticipated 2010 age division final, PSG halted high-flying Kaizer Chiefs, beating them 2-0 in the final in front of a packed venue.
Valentin Houdou, the goalkeeper coach for PSG, expressed his gratitude following the match, thanking South Africa for welcoming the French club. “We are very happy for the team (PSG) to come here for the first time, and we hope to come back quickly for the second time,” he said.
Houdou also reflected on PSG’s win over Chiefs in the title decider. “The game against Kaizer Chiefs was very difficult for us because we lost to them in the group stages,” he said, “but the final was a little bit different. Maybe our players were motivated and fresher.”
While joyfully celebrating PSG’s IberCup South Africa win, he also expressed the hope that the event would continue to grow and said he looked forward to the 2025 edition of the tournament. Houdou said it was good to also have The Netherlands’ PSV and Portugal’s Benfica participating, and he hoped to see even more international clubs added in the coming years.
It was a frustrating day for Kaizer Chiefs, who had three sides lose finals, with the 2011 age group team also going down 2-3 to SuperSport United, while Warriors scored a narrow 1-0 win over the Amakhosi in the 2008 age group final.
Mamelodi Sundowns – 2009 age group champions
After Mamelodi Sundowns clinched the 2009 boys’ division title with a hard-fought 1-0 Pretoria derby victory over Tuks, their coach Surprise Moriri said he was excited for his boys. He also said their title-winning success belongs to them and not the coaching staff.
“I just want to say congratulations to them. I know they have been working hard, and they really wanted to make sure that we played well, so they deserve this moment,” he said.
Moriri also praised his colleague, Sundowns’ u15 coach Selekedi Mogale, who guided his team to the GDL title. Moriri said Mogale achieved outstanding results with the team and he wished to extend his congratulations to him for the outstanding work he had done.
“I want to congratulate him because it’s not all about me. All the other academy coaches have done really well.”
Moriri thanked the organisers of IberCup South Africa for their efforts in hosting this tournament. He said he hoped it would grow even larger and become even more competitive in 2025.
Highlands Park – 2005 age group champions
The “Lions of the North”, Highlands Park FC u19 concluded their year by adding the IberCup title to their list of achievements. The victory followed a successful defence of the GDL title, which was confirmed only on the last day of the season.
Tarrias Sharpley, one of the development coaches at Highlands Park, was delighted after the team edged out Time Tigers 9-8 on penalties, which had taken place following a 1-1 stalemate in regulation time.
“It’s a nice reward for the boys. They deserve this moment after a long season of football,” he said.
“We had a good mixture of boys from 2005 up until 2009 in this squad and they all played like the champions they are. So, it’s a nice incentive for the boys. It was a good tournament. We were able to see how they could cope at a high level.”
Tarrias said one of the main challenges that Highlands Park had to overcome was their late entry into the competition, which meant some of their players had already departed for their homes in other provinces. They also had to contend with an injury during the event.
Meanwhile, preparations were further hampered by exams, which meant those boys who were writing were left to concentrate on their school work, with education being the top priority at Highlands Park.
That, though, allowed the club to give some other players an opportunity and they rose to the occasion, which spoke volumes about the good work being done by the coaches at Highlands Park.
‘What we are doing at Highlands Park is a holistic team effort – from management, to coaches, players, to parents. Everybody adds value to what we do, and we just need to continue with it,” Sharpley said.
He admitted, though, that the club is disappointed that its players have not received more attention from the national team despite their title-winning pedigree. Nonetheless, said Sharpley, the coaches maintain confidence in their players and trust them to perform well.
Next, he added, it was time for the club’s players to embrace the moment and enjoy it, take some time to rest and recuperate, and, then, return stronger than ever in 2025.
2008 Girls’ Age Group
University of Pretoria (Tuks) (5) 1-1 (4) JVW
The final, between Tuks and JVW, captivated the spectators as the sides traded blows in a tension-filled clash.
Tuks took the lead in the first half, but JVW equalised towards the end of the second half to force the contest into a penalty shootout. Tuks, then, claimed the IberCup honours, winning it 5-4 from the spot.
SuperSport Schools Plus spoke with rising star Katlego Malebana after the match as she celebrated her team’s win. It’s been a big year for Malebana, which has included leading the national team to victory in the u15 CAF African Schools Football Tournament in Tanzania and winning the School Star of the Year Award from GSports4Girls. She also helped Mamelodi Sundowns win the Engen Cup Tournament, before joining the Tuks’ first team in the Hollywoodbets Super League.
After Monday’s final, Malebana excitedly recounted Tuks’ efforts and highlighted a crucial 1-1 draw against Mamelodi Sundowns in the group stages that resulted in Sundowns’ elimination from the gold championship. Despite feeling emotional playing against her former club, she stressed that composure won it for Tuks.
“I felt very emotional and I am still feeling emotional even now. We’ve been training so hard, and we’ve been preparing for this moment. I feel very proud of our team and what we have accomplished today”, Malebana said.
It also felt good to claim another title, she added. “It means a lot because I’ve been in different teams and structures throughout the year, coming from Mamelodi Sundowns where football is different compared to Tuks. I had to quickly adjust, so I think winning this cup (IberCup) has motivated me to work even harder.”
In a rare setback for her in 2024, the South African u17 girls’ team, Bantwana, failed to win the Cosafa tournament, which went the way of Zambia. “I want to win everything,” she admitted, “but it’s football. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. Losing is also good, as difficult as it is to accept, but I learn from losing, too.
“So, coming back from Cosafa, I just told myself, let me try to win this cup (IberCup South Africa) and recover my emotions from the Cosafa tournament because I don’t like losing. No one does.
“As an individual and as a team, we have taken lessons from the Cosafa tournament, and I know next time were are going to do better and we will fight hard to go to the World Cup as the u17 national team representing South Africa.”
It’s easy to forget that Malebana is still only 15 years old. She is, after all, one of the country’s standout players. “Sometimes I do feel the pressure, but I keep pushing myself to do better,” she said. “In the Cosafa tournament, I learned so much from my teammates, from the opposition and we all did, so I think that experience gave us a lot of motive to work hard.”
She said she also finds great value with and learns a lot from the Tuks’ first team in the Hollywoodbets Super League. Malebana said she continues to enhance her skills by gaining insights from her fellow Tuks’ squad members.
Boys’ List of Finals
2016 Gold Final
Tshiama Academy A 3-1 Kempton Park FC
Silver Final
Durban Eagles 2-0 Benoni Northerns
2015 Gold Final
SuperSport United 4-2 Tshiama Academy A
Silver Final
Benoni Northerns 2-0 Tuks
2014 Gold Final
SuperSport United 2-1 Highlands Park FC
Silver Final
Central Schools FA 5-3 Rovers FC
2013 Gold Final
SuperSport United 2-0 Highlands Park
Silver Final
Hola Skoko FA 1-0 Mangaung Metro FA
2012 Gold Final
Mamelodi Sundowns 4-1 SuperSport United FC
Silver Final
Total Football Excellence 3-0 Hola Skoko FA
2011 Gold Final
SuperSport United 3-2 Kaizer Chiefs
2011 Silver Final
Future of Africa 6-5 Tuks
2010 Gold Final
PSG 2-0 Kaizer Chiefs
Silver Final
Socca Dream 2-1 Riverside
2009 Gold Final
Mamelodi Sundowns 1-0 Tuks
Silver Final
Randburg AFC 2-0 Langalibalele Sports Academy
2008 Gold Final
Warriors FC 1-0 Kaizer Chiefs
Silver Final
Biya4 Academy 2-1 KZN Lyons FC
2007 Gold Final
Stars of Africa 5-4 Tec4kkers
Silver Final
West Youth Academy 4-1 Future of Africa
2006 Gold Final
Clapham High School 3-0 RCD Espanyol Academy Johannesburg
2005 Gold Final
Highlands Park (9) 1-1 (8) Time Tigers Executive FC
Girls’ List of Finals
2012 Gold Final
Nkabinde Primary School 2-1 Dlala Ntombazana A
2010 Gold Final
Team Gauteng 2-0 JVW FC
2008 Gold Final
Tuks 5-4 JVW FC
Silver Final
Mamelodi Sundowns 5-0 Panorama FC
2005 Gold Final
JVW FC 4-2 University of Johannesburg
