OnSport Reporter
THE Mr Sinkwa Junior Soccer League tournament finals, scheduled for July 26 at Gifford High School in Bulawayo, has highlighted the need for investment in girls grassroots football.
The tournament kicked off with coaching sessions at 12 primary schools in the City of Kings and Queens, revealed the undesired gap in girls’ football at primary schools.
Lack of equipment and regular training played out as some of the pressing concerns affecting girls football.
Sports teachers welcomed the move by the Mr Sinkwa Junior League to incorporate girls and give them an opportunity to improve their talents.
Senzeni Shumba, sports director at Emakhandeni Primary School said the Mr Sinkwa tournament has given exposure to the girls and they have acquired more skills which they would otherwise not have access to.
She said more effort needs to be directed towards the girls game to ensure talent is moulded in its early stages.
Rupert Siyaminda of Lotshe Primary School said he saw a marked improvement in his girls’ team following the training sessions.
“The girls struggled with ball control or even making simple passes but after the training they are now able to pass. The coaches used many drills which I believe assisted the girls a lot in mastering the game,” he said.
Tracia Muradi of Lozikeyi Primary School lamented the fact that girls lack exposure saying their time with the ball is limited as they play game house when they get home with little time with the ball.
“Such competitions as the one being held by Mr Sinkwa are important as they give the girls exposure and more game time. You will find that most girls are not supported at a young age with few getting equipment such as boots,” she said.
Mzilikazi Primary School coach, Josephine Makoti said girls lack support in football during the early stages and stakeholders need to do more including hosting more tournaments such as the Mr Sinkwa Junior League.
“I believe we can reach greater heights if we have more training like the one we got from Mr Sinkwa. The improvement was instant in terms of skill. We got to have more balls and even cones something we don’t usually have,” she said.
Mr Sinkwa engaged former players, Joel “Josta” Ngodzo and Nkululeko “MaRoe” Dube to coach 12 primary schools around Bulawayo towards the end of May.
The 12 schools came from three clusters, Pumula Cluster had Godlwayo, Dumezweni, Ngwegwe and Mabambeni while the Mzilikazi cluster had Mzilikazi Primary, Lozikeyi, Lotshe and Lobengula while the third group had Mckeurtan, Induba, Emakhandeni and St Patricks.
In the boys section, Emakhandeni, Godlwayo, Ngwengwe and Lotshe are in the finals while in the girls category, the coaches decided to bring in selects instead of the schools teams hence there will be Emakhandeni select, Pumula select, Mzilikazi select and Coaches select taking part in the girls finals.
Mr Sinkwa marketing coordinator, Liticia Amanda Trindade said the winners will walk away with shields, medals and an assortment of prizes.
“As Mr Sinkwa we have made it our passion to ensure we play a role in grassroots sport and over the years we have provided kits, equipment and T-shirts. We have realised training youngsters properly is the key to fully developing their talent and we have seconded former athletes to coach at primary schools as we empower developing talent.
“At Gifford, the winning teams will receive a floating trophy each and gold medals for the winning team and silver medals for the runners. There will be prizes for best goalkeeper, best defender, best midfielder and best striker, player of the match. Lunch will be served for the coaches and players while to ensure the young players are motivated by support from their parents, Mr Sinkwa is covering all transport costs to bring in the players along with their parents to the tournament,” she said.
Trindade said they are excited to partner with Ten Toes Africa whose regional technical Director, Alan Johnson will visit players before the final and talk to them about life as a football player and opportunities that lie ahead along with the discipline and hard work that one has to put in to succeed.
