‘SuperSport Schools has changed school sports for the better’, says Glenwood HS coach Khaya Mngwengwe
Gqeberha – Glenwood High School football coach, Khaya Mngwengwe, sang his praises for the wonderful work SuperSport Schools has done so far and gave insight on just how impactful the platform has been in the KZN region and in the country at large.
Before the SuperSport Schools plaform, a few sporting codes at the schools level became national news in the country, and even those that did, only did so on special occassions.
Besides the history-rich rugby festivals, there weren’t as many sporting codes, at school level, that had exposure in the country, at least not at the level it has reached since the inception of the SuperSport Schools platform.
Since SuperSport Schools began its journey broadcasting school sports, the landscape has taken a positive turn around as fans all over the country tune in to the livestreams and engage on social media about their favourite school players and coaches that impress week in, week out.
Glenwood High School soccer coach, Khaya Mngwengwe, told SuperSport School News in an exclusive interview that the broadcasting of school sports has changed things for the better.
“SuperSport Schools has done great things for school sports in the country,” said Mngwengwe whose u19 team qualified for the KZN Schools League semi-final.
“What I like the most is the fact that they don’t only broadcast u19 sports. They go as far as the u15’s across all sporting codes which means more and more players get exposure.
“For the schools it is a great exposure as well. Gone are the days where we’d have to wait for the Sunday newspapers for the country to be able to follow and keep track of how our favourite schools and players are doing in their respective sporting codes.” He added.
Mngwengwe emphasized how the livestreams have changed the game from a coaching point of view.
The man from KZN mentioned how the streams have made their jobs as coaches a little easier in that they now can watch opposition tactics and prepare their players accordingly.
“For us as coaches it helps in terms of formulating plans and strategies against opposition teams because now, we have access to the footage, meaning we can watch how the opposition plays and how we can counter that.
“You’ve got to make sure that your team is well prepared because now the whole world is watching and as a coach, your credibility is on the line and also your team’s reputation is on the line.” He added.
Too many times, Gauteng sport takes center stage in the country because of all the sponsorships that are involved in school sports in that region.
There’s no denying that the Gauteng region is more developed than any other region in the country and that goes hand-in-hand with the quality of players the region produces.
There’s better facilities and academies in the Gauteng region and that affords their players an advantage over any player coming from other regions in the country.
Mngwengwe acknowledged this but also mentioned that the work SuperSport Schools does also exposes the talents in the KZN region, a region where big club scouts would not necessarily prioritise.
With SuperSport Schools broadcasting school sports in the KZN region and other lesser recognised regions, scouts from around the country have more data to look into.
“It has changed things across the board for KZN football as well because now we can showcase to the country and to the world that we do have talented coaches and players and that we have a well-structured league and other tournaments down here.” He said.
Only bigger and better things are expected from all the work SuperSport Schools is doing all around the country.
