The boys from Bloemfontein were the fortunate winners of the six ball penalty shoot-out which had ensued when both sides could not score in regulation time.
THE FOOTBALL team from Bloemfontein’s HTS Louis Botha are the inaugural champions of the Absa Wildeklawer Sport tournament, this after they beat the fancied Clapham High first team on penalties in the final of the football contest on Monday evening in Kimberley.
The boys from Bloemfontein were the fortunate winners of the six ball penalty shoot-out which had ensued when both sides could not score in regulation time. Clapham had the bulk of goalscoring opportunities during the match but poor finishing in front of goal let them down.
For the most part Louis Botha were on the back foot as they struggled to hold off an inspired Clapham attack on their goal area. The Free State side also battled to penetrate the Clapham line of defence as they were often up in the Clapham goal area with a lone striker.
After regulation time neither side had put a ball in the other’s net and the matter immediately went to penalty shoot-out without the intervening extra 30 minutes of added time.
In the shootout, Louis Botha were the first to shoot and neatly scored thrice while Clapham did the same and the teams levelled at three goals each. Then came the dramatic moments where both teams missed their fourth and fifth shots at goal.
Each side then had to take an extra shot at goal and this is where Louis Botha got lucky. They scored from the spot on their sixth shot while the Clapham’s goal taker shot high over the posts much to the joy of the Louis Botha fans.
The football finale was among the three other sports that came to a close on Monday. The Netball contests had come to a close by midday on Monday while the senior rugby teams were still edging towards the semi-finals.
Kimberley Boys High who were part of the football contingent, being one of the eight teams that took part in the first ever Wildeklawer tournament since its establishment, failed to qualify for the knockout stages.
They drew 0-0 in their first match against Grey College, then lost 2-0 against Clapham and went down again with a score of 2-1 against Unitas Sports Academy.
Kimberley Boys High headmaster Xolile Taba gave the farewell address to the departing teams gathered at the school’s sports grounds.
