NWU Vaal, the dark horse of the GDL Youth Cup, shocks everyone
The NWU Vaal Soccer Academy has captured the spotlight after a giant-killing run, which has powered the team into the final of the Gauteng Development League Youth Cup following a 2-1 upset of Mamelodi Sundowns in the semi-finals at Marks Park on Saturday.
NWU Vaal has bucked the typical expectations of recently promoted teams, with a determined collection of energetic and dynamic players who display an impressive unity and collective strength.
Merely a month after ascending from the GDPL to the GDL, NWU Vaal, “the so-called underdogs”, have already made their mark and achieved a great milestone by putting themselves in line for some GDL silverware.
Their youthful squad is led by a young, immensely passionate and committed coach, who isn’t afraid to employ inventive concepts as he seeks to drive his charges to greater heights.
After seeing his team take down Mamelodi Sundowns, coach Abiel Ganu Motaung described the final four clash as intense, adding that Sundowns had showed why they are one of the best teams in the country.
“We were fighting during the half-time break,” he admitted. “The players were questioning our decisions simply because they want nothing but to win, and that is the mentality we have adopted as a team. But, at the end, we managed to find a common ground to get the results.
“Despite Sundowns putting an intense amount of pressure on us, we had to show why we are here and why deserve to play in the final.”
Reaching the title-decider was no walk in the park for NWU Vaal, who had to overcome a murderer’s row of tough opponents – the School of Excellence, SuperSport United and Mamelodi Sundowns – to make it into Sunday’s final.
Coach Motaung said the School of Excellence was probably the most difficult side they had come up against, mentally and physically, because the School of Excellence had taken the game to NWU Vaal and made it difficult for them to play their usual ball.
“I’m happy. I’m over the moon that we have reached the final and that we will also be playing in the GDL. In the Vaal, the boys are struggling to get exposure, as talented as they are. This is also a good opportunity for us young coaches in the Vaal Triangle – Vereeniging, Vanderbijlpark and Sasolburg.
“We are underdogs. We don’t have a professional team at Vaal. Playing in such a league will give us an opportunity to expose the young boys to fully functional structures, so that professional teams can also see the kind of talent we have in the region,” Motaung said.
After the match, a devastated Mamelodi Sundowns’ coach and club legend, Surprise Moriri, said: “We dominated the game, but that’s not enough. We created, and we should have buried those chances, at least three or four of them, but that’s football for you.
“If you don’t take your chances, it becomes difficult. It’s a learning curve for the boys… If you don’t take your chances, the chances of you winning the game become very slim.”
Talking points from Semi-finals of the GDL Youth Cup
Kaizer Chiefs u19s defeated TS Galaxy 5-1 on penalties after regulation time finished at 1-1.
Kaizer Chiefs’ coach David Mathebula commented after his team’s penalty shootout victory: “We lost two matches against them this season. Today, in the first half we played well. Second half, the energy level dropped. But I think the boys pushed and we brought some of the u17s boys in to bring up the energy.
Unfortunately, we conceded from a corner kick, which is something we work on defending. It was a tough game for both teams with the heat, but in the end, we managed to defeat them, and we are into the final.
Mathebula said his team would focus on recovery with the big game set to follow within 24 hours.
Mamelodi Sundowns u15 demolish Jomo Cosmos 6-0
The u15 Brazilians cruised into the final in outstanding fashion by handing Ezenkosi a 6-0 thumping. At half-time, Sundowns already had one foot in Sunday’s game, up by four goals to nil.
Nkululeko Mabaso led the way with a hattrick, while Mpho Molepo, Musa Maloisane and Monanyane Kgaogelo also found the back of the net.
School of Excellence u17 seeks revenge against Kaizer Chiefs
After his team had beaten Tuks 2-1 on Saturday, coach Mojalefa Mathebula said the School of Excellence boys will be out to avenge their loss in the semi-finals of the Easter Cup against Kaizer Chiefs, their opponents in Sunday’s final.
He commended the resilience and strong mentality of his young players for showing good character in a hard-fought win over AmaTuks.
Ntokozo Skhosana, the School of Excellence’s talented left-back, shared his thoughts on the game: “As a team, we knew Tuks are good with long balls. We had to work on our defence.
“Through our game plan, we had to use the strength of our wing-play, and they struggled, which gave us a great deal of advantage when attacking.”
Joburg City u17 fought a good fight against Kaizer Chiefs
Despite losing out 2-3 to Kaizer Chiefs, Joburg City impressed. Most would surely have written off their chances before their semi-final showdown.
Joburg City rose to the occasion, however, and threw the kitchen sink at the Amakhosi. Twice, Chiefs had to come from behind before they finally found a match-winning third goal.
Despite bowing out in the semi-finals, Joburg City will surely be proud of their effort, which extended Chiefs to the limit just one week after the gold and black had ousted GDL champions, Highlands Park, in the quarterfinals.
Semifinal Results
u13
Mamelodi Sundowns 4-0 Jomo Cosmos
Kaizer Chiefs 4-1 Joburg City
u15
Mamelodi Sundowns 6-0 Jomo Cosmos
Rosina Sedibane 3-1 TS Galaxy
u17
School of Excellence 2-1 Tuks
Kaizer Chiefs 3-2 Joburg City
u19
NWU Vaal 2-1 Mamelodi Sundowns
Kaizer Chiefs 1 (5) – 1 (1) TS Galaxy
Final Fixtures: Sunday, 03 December
u13
Kaizer Chiefs vs Mamelodi Sundowns
u15
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Rosina Sedibane
u17
School of Excellence vs Kaizer Chiefs
u19
NWU Vaal Soccer Academy vs Kaizer Chiefs
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