Author: ongcwabe

With the 2024 Gauteng Development League (GDL) complete, SuperSport Schools Plus explores the journeys of the teams that triumphed this season under the “Champions Series” banner.

This week, Ongama Gcwabe narrates the story of the u17 champions, Mamelodi Sundowns, with the help of head coach, Tiro van Rooyen.

Coaching or playing for Mamelodi Sundowns isn’t child’s play at any level. The pressure and expectations within the club, as well as from the outside, from its millions of supporters, bring about an unprecedented amount of stress.

Under-17 coach Tiro van Rooyen knows that pressure all too well, having been with the Pretoria-based unit for several years.

“To be in the yellow shirt as a player and coach is demanding,” Van Rooyen admitted to SuperSport Schools Plus.

“For the players to do something like this this year has been very good for the academy, and it shows that the academy is one of the best, not just in the country but also in the continent.

“When two divisions win the league, it shows that we’ve got good players, probably the best players in the country, and that we have good coaches.”

However, Van Rooyen, and colleagues, including Selekedi Mogale who coached the Sundowns u15 team to back-to-back league titles this season, ensure the Brazilians turn up and turn out, delivering positive results week after week.

Van Rooyen gave SuperSport Schools further insight into those things that go on behind the scenes at Mamelodi Sundowns, which ensures that the club continues its very successful ways.

“Behind the scenes, the leadership of the academy is working very hard to get the best players and helping us technically. We meet every day around 12:00 to prepare training sessions. We have strategy meeting. We have match reports after every weekend and that helps us for the next game,” Van Rooyen revealed.

“It helps us as coaches to develop and improve every single day because if we do not address a couple of problems or things that we do well in the game then we go blindfolded in the next game. When a Sundowns team does well in two divisions, it’s a major boost because every single game that we play is very tough.”

Van Rooyen was under a lot of pressure this season given that he had to build a team from scratch and strike a balance between player development and meeting the high standards for which Sundowns is widely recognised.

At the beginning of the season, the coach inherited 16-year-olds, who were from the u15 football team. It’s a huge jump for the players from that level to the u17s, who play 90-minute matches, as professionals do all around the world.

Van Rooyen had to work on developing different aspects of the players so that they could handle the intensity that comes with u17 football and the professional football space.

“I found the journey of the team very interesting because it was a very young group, so we played with the [team born in] 2008, which is an u16 team. So, naturally playing 90 minutes for the first time, going from 35 minutes a half, physically they had to improve a lot,” he explained.

“Football action-wise, technical-wise, they had to be better and psychologically they had to be better as well. That is the learning curve that at the beginning of the season we struggled with because we would concede in the last five minutes of the first half and we could lose a game closer to the 90-minute mark.

“We dropped the intensity and more mistakes were happening. That was a natural thing for these boys playing 90 minutes for the first time. What we’ve learnt from that is that we can only improve in football action and try to keep the ball a little bit longer.

“Those were the difficult moments in the season but once the boys got better physically, technically, and psychologically, it took the strain away.”

With the Gauteng Development League growing from strength to strength every year, backed by SuperSport Schools’ broadcasting prowess, coach Van Rooyen lauded the development that the league has made over the years.

As a coach, Van Rooyen now has the resources to better analyse his team’s progress and he does that courtesy of the video footage that is available through the SuperSport Schools app.

The coach said he wants to see the league continue to grow for the better of football in the country. “The Gauteng Development League is the best in the country, but also Sub-Saharan Africa,” he enthused. “So far, the league has improved every single year with the referees, organisation, and time.

“In the last two to three years, [thanks to] full game coverage, we can analyse the game as well through the SuperSport Schools app. We can help our players develop technically and tactically.

“Now, it’s [important] to keep the consistency of it, which I think is the most important. That is the big thing for the country now, to make sure that this will be a consistent league and it will carry on for years to come.”

With the 2024 Gauteng Development League (GDL) done and dusted, SuperSport Schools Plus explores the journeys of the teams that triumphed this season under the “Champions Series” banner.

This week, Ongama Gcwabe narrates the story of the u15 champions, Mamelodi Sundowns, with the help of head coach Selekedi Mogale.

The ups and downs of the 2024 season

For the past three seasons, coach Selekedi Mogale’s Mamelodi Sundowns have finished in the top three of the GDL, but they were prevented from winning the league title by the School of Excellence, in 2022, and Kaizer Chiefs, in 2023.

This year, though, Mogale’s team dominated the title race, racking up a record-breaking 95 points after winning 31 games, drawing two, and losing only one.

Mogale juggled the league challenge with his ambitions for silverware in the cup competitions, which made 2024 mentally challenging, he said.

Challenging it may have been, but Sundowns, under Mogale, won an astounding five competitions, including the GDL Top Eight at the start of the season, the African Schools Championship National, Kapstadt Cup u14, the Cosafa African Schools Championship, and, most recently, the GDL a week ago.

“It was an emotional roller-coaster and unbelievable as well. It was so interesting to see these kids perform. Even on the days when I thought that they were tired, they would still push on and just never give up,” Mogale told SuperSport Schools Plus in an exclusive interview.

“Hence, we achieved the results that we achieved, which is incredible. I don’t underestimate what these boys have achieved by a long shot and I’m truly grateful for them and the effort that they’ve put in.”

Mogale told SuperSport Schools that his team’s victories over their arch-rivals SuperSport United, Kaizer Chiefs, and the School of Excellence were the highlights of his season.

“The game versus SuperSport United, the first one, which we won convincingly (4-2). Even for the second one (1-0), I think we should’ve won that convincingly, but with the way we played and exerted ourselves, I was very happy,” he said.

“To cap it off, we had a very emphatic win over our rivals, Kaizer Chiefs. We beat them 4-1 and even that one goal was a giveaway, and that has been the downside of the season. We’ve given away cheap goals.

“To a large extent, you could count maybe three stunners where you could say there’s nothing our goalkeeper could have done about that. So, in general, we gave away cheap goals.

“On the defensive part, we need to learn. I think, internationally, we can be punished for some of the things that we do and these are the differences that see us get knocked out of major tournaments on the continent.”

Coaching Philosophy

Being in charge of young footballers at a club like Sundowns, a club that demands success and trophies, can be a tricky job. However, Mogale’s players-based coaching philosophy has carried him well in his journey with Africa’s biggest football club.

“My coaching philosophy is player-based. So, it’s not me imposing myself on the players but it’s the players showing me what they can do and me putting them to the test,” he said.

“So, it’s everything according to their ability, their mentality, and even their physical ability to handle things.”

To close off the year, Mogale has set his sights on the GDL Cup to conclude what has been a remarkable and memorable year.

Highlands Park’s u19 head coach, Sifiso Mnguni, and his team lifted the 2024 Gauteng Development League (GDL) trophy on the weekend, following a 3-0 victory over East Rand Athletic Club.

Heading into the contest, Mnguni and his young troops were under immense pressure given that they were level on points with coach Surprise Moriri‘s Mamelodi Sundowns team.

Ahead of the final round of fixtures, Moriri’s team enjoyed a superior goal difference to Mnguni’s side, which saw the Brazilians enter their final fixture sitting atop the standings.

For the first time since the first half of the season, Sundowns had taken over at the top, with Highlands Park, who had set the pace since then, ceding the position.

It did not help Mnguni and Highlands Park when bad weather and a wet field led to the postponement of the last fixture of their 2024 campaign a week earlier. However, the “Lions of the North” dealt with the high stakes and the nerves that accompanied the postponement comfortably and walked away with the trophy.

After a thrilling end to a hard-fought and entertaining GDL season, the top three ended as they had done in 2023, with Highlands Park crowned the champions, Mamelodi Sundowns finishing in second place, and coach David Mathebula‘s Kaizer Chiefs having to settle for third.

Highlands Park’s title was confirmed when Mamelodi Sundowns met Kaizer Chiefs at Naturena on the weekend, with the teams effectively neutralising one another and sharing a 1-1 draw, which ensured that the title remained in the hands of the defending champions..

In the u17 division, Mamelodi Sundowns was confirmed as the league winner. Coach Selekedi Mogale‘s charges beat Sevens Academy 4-3 on the weekend, courtesy of a brace from Ntokozo Madondo and further goals from Thando Singo and Kagiso Maloka.

2024 GDL League Winners

Highlands Park – u19
Mamelodi Sundowns – u17
Mamelodi Sundowns – u15
Kaizer Chiefs – u13

With the 2024 Gauteng Development League (GDL) done and dusted, SuperSport Schools Plus explores the journeys of the teams that triumphed this season under the “Champions Series” banner.

To start, Ongama Gcwabe narrates the story of the u13 champions, Kaizer Chiefs, with the help of head coach Mohamed Bhamjee.

The 2024 journey

Coach Bhamjee and his team headed into the season as the defending champions, and that’s a tag that can be a tough one to carry, purely because of the weight of expectations.

In Bhamjee’s case, all of his 2023 players had moved on to the u15 division. The coach had to build his team from scratch while watching his players inherit the pressure that comes with being the defending champions, although they had, in reality, not won the league themselves.

With the odds stacked against him and his new lineup, Bhamjee and his players conquered all obstacles as Kaizer Chiefs won back-to-back league trophies and the GDL Top Eight Cup.

“It’s been a long year and a long season. To win the league, it’s a marathon and not a sprint,” Bhamjee told SuperSport Schools Plus in an exclusive interview.

“With us this season, it was very challenging because last year when we won the league we won it unbeaten. We won it with a few players who were at Kaizer Chiefs before and were in their second year.

“This year, I took over a team that was brand new. Every player was new. So, I had to rebuild a team in January, bringing in players from all different backgrounds and cultures, and this year we were told to sign only 16 players, so our squad size was small.

“Despite all those challenges, these boys pulled it together, worked hard and we managed to clinch the Top Eight trophy earlier this year.

“I think that came as a surprise to a lot of people,” he added. “How did we put together a winning team in such a short period? From that, the confidence built, and we went on a good run.

“We were unfortunate to lose our first game at the end of the first round. But I think that last game was a blessing in disguise. It took a lot of pressure off the players and they just went on from there and after 34 games they managed to win the league.”

Keeping rivals at bay

Bhamjee told SuperSport Schools Plus that the key to Cheifs’ successful campaign was remaining unbeaten against the other title challengers, Mamelodi Sundowns and SuperSport United, who finished second and third place respectively this season.

“The first standout moment was beating Sundowns in the Top Eight competition when no one expected us to do it. I think that built a lot of confidence in a lot of players, into us as a technical team, in the parents, and everyone that we can do this,” said Bhamjee.

“The big thing we did this year was Sundowns and SuperSport were challenging us for the league titles, but we never lost to them. We dropped two points against SuperSport United. We drew and we won 3-1.

“With Sundowns, the game at Clapham we were losing 1-2 with 10 minutes to go and we won it 3-2.

“Two weeks ago, we played them at Naturena. We were 0-1 down and ended up winning the game 3-1. So, a lot of character was shown. The good thing about our players is that they rose to the big occasions and those were very key games.”

The Bhamjee philosophy 

Bhamjee outlined his philosophy for working with a young group of players. “At this age, you emphasise technical ability a lot and you bring in the tactical side next to that. Also, get them to understand what a big brand and club Kaizer Chiefs is and how fortunate they are,” said Bhamjee.

“When it comes to philosophy and all those things, for me it’s about getting them to play the Kaizer Chiefs’ way and getting them to realise how fortunate they are.”

Next week, SuperSport Schools Plus and Ongama Gcwabe will bring you the second entry of the Champions Series featuring the Mamelodi Sundowns under-15 team.

While the under-19 division of the Gauteng Development League is yet to be completed after rain forced a postponement of the final round of fixtures this past weekend, the other divisions have crowned their champions.

Kaizer Chiefs’ u13s successfully defended the title they won last year, putting together a dominant season.

Coach Mohamed Bhamjee and his young troops were confirmed as the league winners a few weeks ago already, which served to underline the team’s dominance.

They recorded only one loss all season. They were also held to four draws and scored a sparkling 29 victories over 34 weeks of intense competition.

After beating TS Galaxy 3-2 on the weekend, it was time for Chiefs to be officially recognised as the champions of the u13 division.

Reatlegile Mosimane excelled on the attack for the Soweto giants. He was a vital cog in the team’s success, tallying 20 goals in the gold and black stripes.

In the under-15 division, Mamelodi Sundowns walked away with the silverware following a 2-0 victory over Sevens Academy on the weekend.

‘Downs were even more dominant in the u15 division than Kaizer Chiefs were at u13 level. They accumulated 95 points in total, which was a massive 24 points clear of Chiefs, in second. Sundowns dropped points on only three occasions, losing one game and drawing two others. The rest, they won.

For those who kept an eye on the season’s results, the team’s triumph will come as little surprise. They were a free-scoring outfit, netting a whopping 114 goals, or 3.4 goals per game over the 34-match season.

The u17 division has not yet concluded, but Mamelodi Sundowns cannot be caught. They top the standings ahead of Remember Elite Sports Academy and Randburg AFC.

Kaizer Chiefs head into the final week of the Gauteng Development League (GDL) season hamstrung for their last outing – a clash with their archrivals Mamelodi Sundowns, which could decide who wins the title – because they’ll be without their coach David Mathebula.

He’ll be in the Free State to complete training for his CAF B Licence, which means the very last match of the GDL season, at Naturena, will see the Amakhosi missing his guidance.

In an exclusive interview with SuperSport Schools Plus, Mathebula said that, despite his unavailability, he trusts his support staff to get the job done at home against Sundowns.

Chiefs have two games to play on the weekend to complete their schedule, and the news was not altogether negative for the club. “I will only be here for the TS Galaxy game,” Mathebula said, “and then, on Sunday, the other coaches will take care of the team.

“I thought we’d be done by now but, obviously, the scheduling comes from Safa, so there’s nothing we can do,” he explained.

“The other coaches understand the demands of the team. When you work for this brand, there’s no easy match. Every game is a big game for us.

“This one, we’re playing Sundowns and when you play the so-called big clubs, it’s all about the bragging rights. The coaches understand the demands, so there’s nothing much I have to say.”

Read: Last match could decide GDL title

Chiefs head into their weekend’s assignments in third place in the GDL standings, with Highlands Park at the top, followed by Sundowns, in second place. Mathematically, the Soweto powerhouse can still win the league, but a lot will have to go their way for that to happen.

Firstly, they will need Highlands Park to lose against East Rand Athletic Club. Also, Sundowns would have to go down to Sevens Academy, and they, themselves, would have to beat TS Galaxy and Sundowns.

Recognising that his team has a slender chance of winning the league, Mathebula said they could have done better in the past two months.

“We’re not in control of this situation,” he acknowledged. “We have to win these games and expect the others to lose and stuff like that. The education part in all of this is to learn that we have to be in control of all of our games so that when we get to this stage we don’t expect anyone to do us favours to win the league.

“That’s what we’ve learned this season. We lost against Tuks and Panorama, two out of the last five games. This was all towards the end of the season and that’s not the time where you can lose points.”

Consistency was key, Mathebula said: “As a coach, I want to be in control of everything, so this situation taught me that I have to be on top of the season, so that I can control the situation toward the end of the season, which is something we didn’t take care of in the middle of the season, and even in the beginning of the season because we drew some games which we weren’t supposed to draw.

“Now we have to hope Highlands Park loses the game and we beat Galaxy and Sundowns. So, I think sometimes we ask too much from the man above to do us those favours.”

Despite all the odds that are stacked against Mathebula and his young troops, Chiefs have heart and are calm under pressure and their two titles this season – the Gauteng Leg of the Engen Knockout Challenge and the national Engen Champ of Champs title – are proof of the club’s ability to perform when under pressure.

Playing for the renowned club comes with its challenges, Mathebula said: “When you’re playing for Kaizer Chiefs every game is difficult. Whether you’re playing against a small team or a big team, playing for Chiefs you have to perform, so you’re under pressure every game.

“I think the boys have done well. Psychologically, the players are in a better state of mind in understanding pressure, so we are not cracking. That’s an advantage. You hardly see players playing under pressure and playing with confidence but our players have shown that [they can do that] this season.”

With the season extended by a week due to the earlier postponement of some fixtures, including the Kaizer Chiefs versus Mamelodi Sundowns showdown at Naturena two weeks ago, teams in the Gauteng Development League (GDL) took to the field on the weekend once again with plenty to play for.

All eyes were on Sundowns, who had an opportunity to narrow the gap on the log leaders, Highlands Park.

It was a tough ask for coach Surprise Moriri‘s Sundowns, though, as they were faced with matches on successive days, playing Joburg City on Saturday and Randburg AFC on Sunday.

‘Downs, though, were up for the challenge, easing to 5-1 and 3-1 wins respectively to reduce the gap on the defending champions, Highlands Park, to only three points ahead of the last week of the season.

Their Tshwane neighbours, SuperSport United, faced off against Kathorus Hyper Academy at Curro Sagewood and emerged victorious by a 5-1 scoreline, which lifted SuperSport into the top five of the league standings.

Remember Elite Sport Academy (Resa) and Randburg AFC drew 0-0 at President Park on Saturday, while Rosina Sedibane Modiba Sports School suffered a shock defeat to 16th-placed Joburg City.

RESULTS

Mamelodi Sundowns 5-1 Joburg City
SuperSport United 5-1 Kathorus Hyper Academy
Remember Elite Sports Academy 0-0 Randburg AFC
Mamelodi Sundowns 3-1 Randburg AFC
Rosina Sedibane Modiba Sports School 0-2 Joburg City

A LOOK AHEAD TO THE FINAL WEEK

Thirty-five weeks of intense Academy football have come and gone and, with only one week left, the champion has not yet been determined.

After hundreds of fixtures, three teams – log leaders Highlands Park, second-placed Mamelodi Sundowns, and third-placed Kaizer Chiefs – have a chance to walk away with the coveted league title.

It’s little surprise that the trio is once again battling it out for the honours. It was a similar story in 2023, when Highlands Park hoisted the trophy, with Sundowns settling for second and Chiefs for third.

The defending champions hold a three-point advantage over ‘Downs and enjoy a six-point cushion over Chiefs, but the Tshwane-based Sundowns have played two games fewer than “The Lions of the North‘” which means if the Brazilians win their last two matches and Highlands Park also wins, the league winner would be decided on goal difference.

The season is set for a nail-biting finish with Sundowns and Chiefs locking horns in the very last match at Naturena Village on Sunday. The tension will, no doubt, be through the roof.

On the other hand, Highlands Park appears to have a simpler task. They conclude their season on Sunday against East Rand Athletic Club at home.

NWU Vaal FC’s u19s beat the School of Excellence 1-0 at Elandsfontein on Saturday to walk away with maximum points, which lifted them to 14th place on the Gauteng Development League (GDL) log.

The win by NWU Vaal over one of South Africa’s most highly regarded academies showed that the GDL newcomers have assimilated to meet the demands of the league. More than that, their victory showed they belonged.

It took coach Tebello Kheswa‘s NWU Vaal side a little longer than expected to acclimatise to the high-intensity football that is on display in the GDL week in and out.

Last season, they dominated the promotional league and competed fiercely in cup competitions, which included ousting Mamelodi Sundowns from the GDL Youth Cup before finally being stopped by Kaizer Chiefs in the final.

Based on those excellent performances, many expected Kheswa and his young troops to quickly find their feet in the GDL after their promotion was announced.

However, a late start to their season, caused by an attempted change of name, of all things, led to NWU Vaal playing catch-up from the start. They were also behind in terms of match fitness. That cost them and they’ve had to stomach 17 losses while winning only nine times, including Saturday’s impressive victory over School of Excellence.

However, their performance away from home, in Elandsfontein, proved that they have what it takes to become contenders.

At the University of Pretoria Sports Campus, Tuks hosted the defending champions and current log leaders, Highlands Park, on Saturday.

The Lions of the North demonstrated their hunger for a successful defence of their title with a confident 4-0 away victory. With three more points to bolster their points’ total, they further strengthened their case as champions-elect as the GDL races towards its conclusion.

On Sunday, Tuks were in action once more. Despite again playing at home, Jomo Cosmos heaped more misery on Tuks, netting three times without reply to hand their opponents a second big loss in succession.

After 34 matches, Cosmos have completed their schedule. They occupy seventh place in the standings, with 14 wins and 12 losses.

Rosina Sedibane Modiba Sports School picked up three points with a closely contested 1-0 home win over Kathorus Hyper Academy.

At Naturena Village, the highly anticipated fixture between two title-chasing teams – third-placed Kaizer Chiefs and second-placed Mamelodi Sundowns – was called off because of lightning.

RESULTS

Saturday, 26 October

School of Excellence 0-1 NWU-Vaal
Tuks 0-4 Highlands Park

Sunday, 27 October

Tuks 0-3 Jomo Cosmos
Rosina Sedibane Modiba Sports School 1-0 Kathorus Hyper Academy
Kaizer Chiefs vs Mamelodi Sundowns (called off, lightning)

The Soweto giants, Kaizer Chiefs, host the country’s hottest football franchise, the Pretoria-based Mamelodi Sundowns, in a Gauteng Development League (GDL) clash at Naturena this weekend.

In the context of the league standings, the teams are tied on 75 points with the only difference being Mamelodi Sundowns’ superior goal difference.

That has them just ahead of Chiefs on the log, in second place. The defending champions, Highlands Park, are in first place.

The Brazilians also have one game in hand, having played 30 matches compared to Chiefs’ 31, and the season comprises 34 games in total.

There is more to this fixture, especially considering the pedigree of the head coaches in charge of the two teams.

CHIEFS’ MATHEBULA

At Naturena, Kaizer Chiefs have coach David Mathebula, a 41-year-old former Chiefs’ player whose blood is gold and black through and through.

This season, Mathebula has already guided Chiefs to two titles, with the club winning the Gauteng leg of the Engen Knockout Challenge and following that up by capturing the national Engen Champ of Champs.

‘DOWNS’ MORIRI

In Pretoria, Mamelodi Sundowns are led by coach Surprise Moriri, the former captain of a record-breaking team back in the early 2000s.

Moriri donned the Sundowns’ shirt for more than a decade and represented Bafana Bafana on 34 occasions.

When it comes to the culture, the style of play on the pitch, and what the Sundowns’ brand stands for, there is no better candidate than Moriri to instill those values in the youngsters coming up in the academy.

Both Moriri and Mathebula are tactically astute, and given that they played many professional games against each other, this weekend’s fixture will surely bring back memories of an old rivalry that entertained the country for many years.

On the field, the two coaches have fantastic players at their disposal. Sundowns have the young forward Kamva Moni, who has banged eight goals so far this season, while Chiefs can counter with Mpho Khethang, who also has scored eight goals, and this leads one to expect a high-scoring contest.

The fixture will be played on Sunday.
The defending champions and league leaders, Highlands Park take on Tuks on Saturday. They’ll be eager to add another tick in the win column to maintain the pressure on Sundowns and Chiefs.

FIXTURES

Saturday, 26 October

Tuks vs Highlands Park
SuperSport United vs Kathorus Hyper Academy
School of Excellence vs NWU Vaal FC

Sunday, 27 October

Joburg City vs Kathorus Hyper Academy
Kaizer Chiefs vs Mamelodi Sundowns
Tuks vs Jomo Cosmos

The annual St David’s Marist Inanda Hoops Classic Challenge tips off on Thursday, with the action running through to Sunday.

It’s the seventh edition of the tournament and it features 40 teams across various age groups going head-to-head for the titles.

Catch the action LIVE on SuperSport Schools

The hosts, St. David’s Marist Inanda, are confident of a good performance and of bettering the fourth-place finish they achieved in the u18 competition in 2023.

They’re grouped in Pool B with Grey High, Parktown Boys’ High, and St John’s College. They face a tough challenge, but St David’s captain Oliver Maskell said his team is eager to take it on.

“The team is really motivated for this weekend,” Maskell said. “We’ve had our fair share of ups and downs so far this season, but we’ve prepared [well] and we’re excited to put on a show for Inanda to see.”

Tickets Sales

The defending champions, St. Benedict’s College, faced the St John’s Basketball Tournament runners-up, King Edward VII (KES),  Saheti, and St Andrew’s College in Pool A.

Pool C should produce tight games, but St Stithians, who finished third in the 2023 edition of the Inanda Hoops Challenge, will fancy their chances against Jeppe, Redhill, and Hilton College.

Perhaps the most interesting group in this year’s edition is Pool D. While some may deem it the least anticipated because it includes Sacred Heart, 11th in 2023, and St Peter’s College, 15th last year, those two teams have good strategies to offer.

However, Pretoria Boys High will bear watching. They’ll be confident after winning the Westville Stayers Basketball Tournament in September, where Nehemiah Nii-Aryee and Thomas Fagas were included in the All-Star team at the event’s conclusion. Kings Linbro Park completes the group and will feel one of the top two positions in the pool is within their reach.