Teams returned to the William Herbert Sports Ground full of optimism. Saturday the 4th of November would turn out to be an action packed matchday as each team had 3 games to look forward to. They would need all the help they could get as their bodies would be battered by the end of it.

The fans certainly did their best to help in the early morning, cheering with some rhythmic passion, boosting the morale of players and those around them. Later on, fans got involved with a fun midday ‘celebration off’. Even players and referees took part in this competition, showing off their goal celebrations with Celtics player, Joshua, somersaulting his way to first place.

Starting the day, many teams knew that Saturday would make or break their tournament hopes of advancing to the next stage. Matchday 2 certainly lived up to the hype, as we saw many great moments of football. Friday we saw the talent these young boys have, but on Saturday we saw each team play with maturity beyond their years. Attack was definitely the strategy teams started the day with as plenty of goals were scored throughout. Despite the focus on attack it was clear there were still tactical decisions to be made in order to manage the players physical and mental condition.

The teams’ positions in the Super Cup groups started to take its shape with no real upsets happening this Saturday. There are definitely some heavy legs and tired lungs heading home in preparation for the final round of games happening Sunday, the 5th of November.

 

Aquil Sookoo

Friends and family came together on Friday evening, November 3rd, to support the opening of the Super Cup U16. 20 teams hrom across the Cape have come to showcase their talent and compete for the coveted Super Cup trophy, currently held by Ubuntu FC.The teams are split into 4 groups, playing a round-robin format with the top 2 in each group advancing to the knockout stage.

Defending champs started off strong winning their opening game 3-0, this being the biggest win of the night. Plenty of teams showcased their talent, however, some of the teams to watch include: Ubuntu FC, Stellenbosch FC, Cape Town City and Everton FC.

Saturday will see the continuation of the Super Cup leading on to the finals matches on Sunday, all of which are being played at the William Herbert Sports Ground.

The young boys were spurred on by the support of their friends and family and will be hoping for more of the same over the course of the weekend.

Aquil Sookoo

The story of the Regional Mens League Cape Town Nedbank Cup came to its conclusion this Wednesday as Matroosfontein took on Premier United in the highly anticipated final.

Both teams walked onto the pitch with their heads held high as they were ready to do battle and be crowned champions. This showed in their style of play, as both teams came out pressing high and tested the composure of each other’s backline and midfield, with the common outlet to this being long balls.

Matroos opened the scoring early in the first half as their high press worked out for them as Tuaric Gamildien, the Matroos attacker, pressed the goalkeeper of Premier and forced a heavy touch from the goalie, Gamildien then pounced on the error and chipped the ball over the scrambling keeper and ran off to celebrate in the corner.

Now trailing, Premier took it as extra motivation and they started to control the game more, containing Matroos to their own half and forcing a few good saves from Matroos’ keeper. Premier were awarded a penalty late into the half after Mogamat Moosa was deemed to have handled the ball in the box.
Up stepped Lance Beyers to take the penalty however, he could not score and dragged his shot just past the left upright. Matroos had the lead going into the break but Premier had the momentum.

Premier Utd started the second half strong, becoming more confident on the ball and stringing together good passes. A couple of minutes in, this paid off for Premier as Lance Beyers gathered the ball on the left wing, and with a bit of luck, levelled the score after drilling a ball across the face of the goal which was turned in by Matroos’ own, Ashley Hendricks.

The level scores did not last very long as Matroos won a freekick in a dangerous position. Captain Reagan Faro fired one close to the keeper, who parried the ball back to the centre of the 6-yard box, leaving an open net for Gamieldien to tap in an easy goal, restoring their advantage to 2-1.

After their second goal, Matroos resorted to playing on the counter. They eventually doubled their lead with Gamildien completing his hat trick, pouncing on the second ball. Premier’s woes did not end there as their goalkeeper was subsequently sent off for dissent towards the referee, leaving his team down 2 goals and without a keeper.

With 7 minutes left Premier managed to pull one goal back as Beyers collected the ball on the edge of the box and quite brilliantly placed it past the reach of the Matroos’ keeper. Ultimately this goal came too late and Matroosfontein won the match 3-2.

Matroosfontein went home as the Regional Nedbank Cup Champions of 2023 with heads held high for the next round.

 

Aquil Sokoo

The Windy city brought us some thrilling matches this weekend as it played host to the Regional Third Division Nedbank Cup across the Cape.

The Round of 16 started on Saturday the 28th of October, and the teams faced the tough challenge of playing against the relentless wind. This resulted in play not being as fluid as the coaches would have wanted but ultimately, 8 teams advanced to the Quarter finals on Sunday morning, those being; Vasco Da Gama, Seaside Spurs, Saxon Rovers, Matroosfontein, Crystal Palace, Premier United, Jomos Power and Trinitarians.

Rooikrans Sport Complex hosted the Cup Quarterfinals on Sunday morning with the Semi-finals taking place later that same day. The weather conditions were not as tiring as Saturday meaning teams could play at a smoother tempo.

After a successful win in the Quarterfinals of Sunday morning, Seaside Spurs and Matroosfontein faced each other in the Semifinals later that day and played out a hard fought draw after 90 minutes ending 1-1. This led to a tense penalty shootout with Matroos seemingly having cooler heads as Seaside missed three penalties without even testing the keeper, thus Matroosfontein secured their spot in the finals after winning the penalty shootout 3-1.

On the other side of the bracket, there were less dramatic proceedings as Premier United secured their spot in the finals beating out Jomo’s Power 2-0 in a comfortable win.

On Wednesday, the 1st of November, Mastroosfontein and Premier United battle it out for the title of Regional Third Division Nedbank Cup Champions.

 

Aquil Sokoo

In an intense and closely contested football match, Hanover Park and Grassy Park United went head-to-head in a thrilling encounter which ended in a 1-1 draw in regular time, but saw the home team emerge victorious 5-4 on penalties.

The game kicked off in brilliant conditions and Hanover Park took early control, showing their intent, dictating the early possession and stringing together a few promising opportunities. This led to the home team taking the lead through a cleverly looped half volley by their number 11, Togeur Classen, leaving visiting goalkeeper, Aviwe Solani, with no chance.

The goal seemed to bring Grassy Park United into the game as they finally started to show unity and string some well worked passes together. Their efforts paid off, as a well worked play down the right wing gave the visiting team’s number 7, Cameron Paulse, an opportunity to slot one into the top right corner from just outside the 6 yard box.

The second half saw both teams display tremendous energy and determination. Hanover Park aimed to regain the lead, while Grassy Park United was equally resolute in their pursuit of a winning goal. The goalkeepers on both sides were kept busy, with fantastic saves denying some dangerous attempts on goal.

Despite the chances created by both teams, the scoreline remained unchanged, and after 90 minutes of regular time, the match ended 1-1. This resulted in a penalty shootout that had the crowd reeling with anticipation as the home team emerged victorious 5-4, the visiting team’s only miss coming from their captain, Tashreeq Fielies, who pushed his penalty past the left post.

The match was a true testament to the competitive spirit of both Hanover Park and Grassy Park United. Grassy Park United gained some valuable experience for their fresh squad and Hanover Park advanced to the quarter finals.

Aquil Sookoo

Final day at the 2023 Engen Knockout Challenge in Cape Town promises to deliver an exciting and action packed day in Rooikraans, Grassy Park.

Saturday was the day where final group matches were played and log positions were determined, separating the winners finalists from the rest. Both Ladies and boys sections were well contested and if the quarterfinals are anything to go, we’re in for a humdinger of a final day.

Highlights of Saturday included the Cape Town Spurs team having the dreaded task of overcoming a must win final group game to make it to the winners section. Their opponents HBUFC started the day being 2^nd in the group after winning Rygersdal and FC Porto in the first 2 rounds.

Spurs found their form in the 2^nd half of the match and managed to score 4 goals against a helpless HBUFC side, ensuring the Spurs side their spot in the quarterfinals.

Ladies defending champions, CT Roses ended 2^nd in their group after losing 2-0 to former champions, RV United. Roses did however make light work of Hotspurs in the quarterfinal winning the Mitchells Plain side by 9 goals to 1, ensuring their semi final spot for the Sunday.

The match of the day was clearly the battle between old foes, Cape Town Spurs and Cape Town City. A high intensity match delivered good value entertainment with both sides unable to secure a win in regulation time (1-1) and having to settle the score via a penalty shootout, Spurs the victors after sudden death winning 7-6.

Rygersdal and Hellenic settled their CTTFA derby quarterfinal with a 1-0 win to Rygersdal and booking their spot in the semis against Ubuntu who beat Eyethu 5-0 in their quarterfinal match.

So, the semis are booked for an early 9am kickoff with the boys section having Rygersdal facing Ubuntu and Cape Town Spurs facing Stellenbosch. Ladies section sees defending champs CT Roses face newbies Salt River Blackpool and RV United against Dangerous heroes.

No doubt all eyes will be on the Spurs vs Stellies semi and RV United vs Dangerous Heroes.

Whichever teams make it to the finals, it will be an achievement in itself and the promise of delivering a well-deserved representative for the CT region at the national event in JHB.