It is not every week that this space is dedicated to an advert or a partnership between Soccer Laduma and any other company. However, due to the importance of the partnership between Soccer Laduma and SCORE ENERGY DRINK, which gives a life-changing opportunity to amateur teams, it is a no-brainer that there is a need to amplify a call-to-action and recruit as many people to sign up and enter the competition as possible.
In short, this is a partnership that seeks to improve the amateur football conditions by providing the much-needed equipment for coaches and players so that their training sessions and even games can go to the next level. As a product of amateur football, where just having one soccer ball was a luxury, one understands how important it is to have as many soccer balls as possible. That is how footballers become accustomed to knocking the ball around by doing as much ball-oriented exercises as possible, rather than getting a touch every three or so minutes because there are more than 20 players sharing just one soccer ball. Most of these amateur teams are run from someone's pocket, which explains the limited resources, coupled with the disadvantaged backgrounds from which most of these amateur teams are formed. The same team owners and coaches have to take from their own families' 'bread' to share with their players and groom them into household names in their communities and sometimes even the country. They normally get very little recognition for their efforts. These are people who keep our players away from gangsterism and drugs by giving them a chance at a better future life. They don't have to do this, but because they have the community's interests at heart, they choose to sacrifice and dedicate their lives to ensuring that these kids are involved in sport. Interestingly, most of these people have zero experience or qualifications for the roles they play. They are only armed with passion for development and that's all they need to make a difference in their communities.
Imagine if there was more that could be made available to them! That's exactly where the below information comes in and let's please spread the message and help wherever we can so that more amateur players, team owners and players become aware of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and apply.
Zenzele competition! Are you coaching a soccer team in your community and just don't have enough cones, bibs and balls to run your sessions the way you would like to? Do you get to training and have to share just two balls between 20 of you? Does your son or daughter play for the local soccer team that needs extra resources? SCORE ENERGEY DRINK wants to fix that. We are calling all coaches who are heroes in their community to take part in this competition to help get you what you need to do an even better job! Get your players to enter, get their parents to enter, get the whole community to enter to increase your chances of winning soccer balls, soccer kits and more for your squad! There is even a cash prize to help improve your soccer coaching efforts! The competition closes this Sunday, April 30th, so get your entries in and SCORE big! Simply tell us how SCORE ENERGEY DRINK can better equip you or your team, explaining your situation and your needs by clicking this form link here: https://www.drinkscore. co.za/win-with-score Please include the address of your club, school or organisation as well as a contact number. For terms and conditions, please click on: https://www.drinkscore.co.za/winwith-score
On a separate note, we have to give credit where it is due. With four rounds of fixtures to go before we pull the curtain on the DStv Premiership 2022/23 season, no team has games in hand nor outstanding court cases! Almost everyone has played the same number of games, with Mamelodi Sundowns about to play Richards Bay FC at the time of going to press. By the time you read this column, every team will have played 26 games, with Sundowns, Marumo Gallants, Bay and SuperSport United having played 27 matches. When you look at the Motsepe Foundation Championship, everyone is on 27 games, which is a perfect scenario and levelled playing fields. It is so refreshing knowing that there are no unresolved court cases threatening the ending of the season and that no one can point a finger at anyone for either getting relegated or failing to meet the target set at the beginning of the season. To think there were continental football matches that needed to be accommodated, thanks to Sundowns and Marumo's impressive progress in the CAF Confederation Cup and Champions League respectively, on top of the hectic domestic league calendar speaks volumes about the planning that was implemented by the League.
The spirit of Fair Play will apply perfectly this time around and this is thanks to the brilliant fixture planning. This augurs well for the League's credibility because any controversy puts a dent on the League's image, whenever there are disputes that have to be settled in court. Football matches and titles are won on the field of play, not boardrooms or courtrooms. When everyone has played almost the same number of games, there's very little room for error and underhand tactics and therefore no one can claim unfair treatment. It has happened in the past where the League was taken to court, but this campaign has been seamless with less controversy. Even with refereeing, even though there's always room for improvement, things have been relatively good this season and we can only get better, going forward. What maybe the League may want to look into is their relationship with the South African Football Association for the betterment of our Beautiful Game. The shenanigans taking place in the lower divisions are nothing to laugh about. The corruption allegations continue to raise eyebrows and drop jaws, but nothing seems to be done about it. This doesn't do justice to the hard work done by office-bearers of both institutions and pointing fingers or operating in isolation is not going to be a solution at all. What happens at SAFA affects the PSL and vice versa.
At the end of the day, the lower divisions are where development should be taking place. These are the divisions we expect to supply the senior teams with quality players who are the future superstars. When those leagues are rigged with corruption and maladministration allegations, then it defeats the purpose. We can't have the 'survival of the fittest' but deserving teams going through to the upper divisions. This is something that needs to be taken into consideration just as urgently as the professionalisation of match officials so that we leave no stone unturned in our efforts to improve our game. By so doing, chances of corruption will be minimised and the integrity of our League enhanced. Now, with everyone having already played the same number of games, whoever gets relegated will have themselves to blame. That no one can safely say who will win automatic promotion in the Motsepe Foundation Championship with only three games to go says a lot about the intensity of the competition and the league. You then consider the fact that the relegation zone from both divisions is still not entirely decided, while the battle for second spot in the elite league is still on, then that gives you an idea of the photo finish we can expect. It is good to see the League learning from past mistakes and ensuring improvement with time.
Cheers,
VeeJay
