Seven Stars, SAB teams meet to get ready for upcoming Nedbank Cup
Friendly matches a chance to sort out any problems
With the elimination round only a couple of weeks away in the lucrative Nedbank Cup that gives amateur soccer clubs an opportunity to shine and smile all the way to the bank, local teams prepped themselves this past weekend.
Two Komani-based teams – Seven Stars and Roman Callies FC – as well as the University of Fort Hare FC from Alice and Fast Eleven FC from Tarkastad, took part in friendly matches at the Sandringham field on Sunday.
Seven Stars, which competes in the ABC Motsepe League, the third tier of SA soccer, drew 1-1 with the University of Fort Hare, which plays in the SAB regional league, before defeating amateurs Fast Eleven 2-0.
Callies, meanwhile, beat both Fort Hare and Fast Eleven by the same scoreline of 2-1.
Seven Stars coach Willie Kepkey said the preseason games would be used to prepare for the Nedbank Cup and the league.
“We are checking other players to test if they will fit in to the team. The main thing is to get game time, check the boys’ levels and sort out mistakes.”
The team also used the tournament to scout players, Kepkey said.
The tournament was also used by young players to showcase talent and gain experience.
Callies FC coach Lonwabo Bobotyana said the plan was to expose players to university soccer and solidify the team’s relationship with Fort Hare. He said players in the lower leagues could gain experience from competing with those from higher set-ups.
Siyamthemba Nzakayi, Fast Eleven’s communications manager, said the team was invited and took advantage of the opportunity to show their young players’ skills and hoped they would be picked up by SAB or ABC Motsepe teams. “We don’t have a league in Tarkastad. To compete, we have to play outside our town,” he said. The youngsters would also learn from their more experienced counterparts.
According to Fast Eleven’s owner, Luvuyo Tolashe, the team has produced players that have played in the country’s top leagues.
University of Fort Hare’s Oko Filtane said the tournament would help players get match fitness ahead of the Nedbank Cup. “It’s been three weeks since we returned to training and we want to see how ready our players are. The results are not that important.”
UFH also plays in the SAB League in the Amathole region. The Nedbank Cup is open to teams from the Premier Soccer League down to the SAB regional leagues.