Ubuntu girls make a good first impression

Fish Hoek-based Ubuntu FC’s newly established girls’ team made a good impression at the weekend’s under-14 Cup of Dreams tournament, at the William Herbert sports ground, in Wynberg, despite a 3-0 defeat to Gugulethu’s Cape Town Roses.

The competition, now in its fourth years and hosted by Wynberg-based Spurs Women’s FC, also featured a senior division with 22 teams competing for honours in the different sections.

Established in January, coach Chris Njokwana’s side gave better-fancied teams a run for their money throughout the competition to make it all the way to the finals.

A former SA freestyle football champion, Njokwana, knows a thing or two about ball handling and coached the under-12 national team that competed at the Danone Nations Cup world finals, in Barcelona, Spain, at the World Finals 2019.

Since then he’s made ball mastery his forte with a brief coaching spell in Johannesburg and spent time coaching high performance girls at Hellenic.

“We did really well. Lost in the final against an ‘experienced’ Cape Town Roses team,” Njokwana said.

"For far too long girls have been and continue to play with boys. There is not enough girls’ only leagues. The authorities are working on developing more girls/women’s leagues and tournaments which is very encouraging.

“The more girls football is talked about and written about, the more popular it will be. Girls have been wanting an outlet and a fair chance to compete,” he said.

Tournament director Winston Zeederberg agrees, saying the aim of the tournament was to create a platform for senior women and girls to showcase their talents.

“It is important to have tournament such as this one because you will find raw diamonds which just need a little work but have the potential to shine bright,” he said.

In the senior division, Rondebosch-based Magic Ladies beat Roses 1-0 to lift the trophy.