Last week the SPLFA announced that the association will restart its participation in the five-team Inter-LFA championship that had been paused for two seasons by the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Sol Plaatje Local Football Association on Monday morning ran out to field the four youth elite teams that will represent the organisation in the re-established Inter-LFA championship that will take place in Cape Town from Wednesday up to Sunday.
Last week the SPLFA announced that the association will restart its participation in the five-team Inter-LFA championship that had been paused for two seasons by the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Inter-LFA comprises two teams from the Western Cape, another two from the Eastern Cape and the Sol Plaatje LFA as the fifth member.
LFA chairperson Seabata Makhele, executive committee member Zebulon Ngoma and youth teams co-ordinator Thabo Namisa, held the last preparatory meeting on Sunday with parents of the youths who will be taking part in the tournament.
The LFA then convened all teams on Monday morning at the FNB artificial turf for a captain’s run ahead of their departure on Tuesday. The LFA also used the occasion to go over the logistics of the trip down to the coast.
Makhele reported that the association had over the weekend had fruitful engagements with potential benefactors who had responded to their call for assistance in kind or money. They were poised to continue discussions with those interested persons in the course of Monday morning, he said.
In an earlier interview Makhele had made known that the LFA’s in-house resources to support the association’s elite youth teams were rather thin. The association had therefore resorted to issuing a call for assistance to whichever sponsor to step up for the teams.
The association was in need of playing kits, including boots. Apart from that Makhele said they needed provisions for the youngsters for the duration of the tournament as well as for their provisions to and from the tournament.
LFA youth teams co-ordinator Thabo Namisa said the association’s development programme had thus far lived up to expectations. Already several youths who had graduated from the programme had gone on to pursue engagements with professional club academies in especially Gauteng.
“We are generally satisfied with the job that our coaches are doing.We have a lot of boys who have graduated from our development programme and have now joined senior leagues.”
