School of Excellence, the Gods’ favourite sons | GDL Cup Semi-Finals
Time and again, the Gods of this “beautiful game” lace up their boots for the one duty they have been known to do best in football: level the playing fields.
Although some perceive this only as a myth, most football fans around the world understand and believe in the power of the Gods of football.
Many believe it was the Gods’ intervention that saw Leicester City win the English Premier League eight years ago in the presence of the giants of English football, including Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool.
As we build up to the semifinals of the Gauteng Development League Top 8 Cup, where the giants of South African football, Mamelodi Sundowns (u19), are set to play School of Excellence, one wonders whether this will be one of those times when we witness the Gods’ divine intervention once again?
Across the African continent, and the world to an extent, the Tshwane-based Sundowns are respected as a successful football franchise and a talent-producing machine for the rainbow nation.
The domination of the “Kabo Yellow” nation was underlined when eight players in Bafana Bafana‘s starting XI during the recently concluded Africa Cup of Nations were Sundowns players, a feat of dominance that is rare in any national team.
At the academy level, it is no different. Sundowns often dominate. In the under-19 division, they finished second in the GDL last season, 10 points behind league winners Highlands Park.
However, one team seems to be favoured by the Gods when facing Sundowns and that is School of Excellence (SOE).
Last season, SOE returned impressive results against the mighty Sundowns, drawing 2-2 in their most recent fixture, in August 2023, while emerging victorious by a 3-2 margin in June.
As the two teams prepare to meet this Saturday, will Excellence continue their good run of form against Sundowns?
SOE might not have the same pedigree as Sundowns, but they are an institution that has had a monumental impact beyond the football space in the country.
As a project, SOE has stuck to its main objectives of providing youngsters from disadvantaged backgrounds an opportunity to stake a claim in the often-harsh world of professional sports.
Over the 26 years of its existence, SOE has hosted trials annually in search of 120 talented youngsters, to guide and equip them, not only with training facilities but also with an education. Players of the calibre of Steven Pienaar and Daine Klate are products of the project.
At 14:00 on Saturday, School of Excellence will go head-to-head with Sundowns for a spot in Sunday’s final in the first competition of the 2024 football season in the Gauteng region.
Semifinal Fixtures, Saturday 24 February
U13
- Kaizer Chiefs vs Remember Elite Soccer Academy
- Mamelodi Sundowns vs Panorama
U15
- Highlands Park vs Mamelodi Sundowns
- School of Excellence (SOE) vs TUKS
U17
- Supersport United vs Highlands Park
- Kaizer Chiefs vs Randburg
U19
- Prestige Football Development Academy vs Supersport United
- Mamelodi Sundowns vs School of Excellence (SOE)
