The second year of the community games was a success, say corporate sponsors
David Rossouw
The Iyana Foundation and Too Much Wifi Community Games, now in its second year, kicked off at the Dunoon Sportsfield with a thrilling start. The games were initiated a year ago to foster community unity through sports, says Iyana Foundation treasurer Mueketsi Simanga.
Simanga says thanks to generous support from corporate entities such as Too Much Wifi and Astron Energy, the games have served as motivation for soccer teams.
Thirty teams participated in the tournament which began on Saturday, 21 October, with the finals taking place on 29 October.
In the first semifinal, local team Dunoon Youth Sporting Academy (DYSA) faced off against CCK Legacy. After a goalless draw in regular time, DYSA triumphed with a 4-2 victory from the penalty shootout.
Classic FC and Harambe FC tackled each other in the second semifinal and it went to the wire with Classic leading 2-1 with 10 minutes to play. Harambe was also punished when the referee red-carded one of the players and it looked like Classic had the game in their pocket. But Harambe dug deep and their strikers scored two brilliant goals and was victorious over Classic with a 3-2 win.
In the final the local boys from DYSA under manager Zolisile Seku took on Harambe FC in a game that sparked from the starting whistle. DYSA made their intention to win known by drawing first blood and walking off for the half time break with a 1-0 lead.
After scoring their second goal in the second half, DYSA had one hand on the trophy, and their rock solid defence made Harambe FC’s life difficult, but they managed to get a goal in with five minutes left to play. But it was too late.
A delighted Seku said his boys played well, although they make some silly mistakes at times.
“I am very happy for my team and it shows that we are improving in our football,” said Seku as he thanked Harambe FC for a good game.
Iyana Foundation in collaboration with Too Much Wifi said they are very happy with the tournament and the level of play.
“I think we succeeded in our task by bringing the community together through sport. We hope that this will also encourage the boys to rather get involved in sport as this will not only improve their lives, but will also help them to be role players in their communities,” said Simanga.
“We thank the players and the Dunoon Local Football Association (DLFA) for allowing us to contribute to community sport, and we hope that we will bring in more corporate companies with our next tournament,” he said.