The young and gifted take football in their stride
JOBURG – Wits University Junior Football Club is developing the football greats.
The oldest and most successful football development club in the country is the Wits University Junior Football Club.
It has become the destination of choice for talented youth who wish to have a successful career in football.
The club, founded in 1978, has honed many a footballing star. Top-flight footballers who are recent additions to a long list of players who have come through the ranks of the development club include Enrico Adolph, Asive Langwe, Katlego Pule and Letsie Koapeng. According to the junior football manager at the club, Rafiki Fridi, these players are living tributes to the club’s 39-year-old legacy.
“Many of our players have reached the PSL, provincial and international level, based on the professional and personal training done at our club, year after year. We pride ourselves on offering Rand Central Local Football Association and South African Football Association accredited coaches, thus offering our players the best we can in coaching knowledge and experience,” Fridi said.
Wits provides and maintains the playing fields at Marks Park in Emmerentia, and with more than 500 members, the football club is a bustling cauldron of activity that features seasonally in prestigious cup competitions including the Ajax Cape Town U11/U12 tournament (Ikamva Cup), the Nike U15 tournament as well as the Engen Knockout U17 tournament hosted by the club.
“We endeavour to assist players to further their education at Wits University and to continue playing for the Wits University teams, for which we have started a bursary fund. We also assist the older, willing players with football coaching or referee courses to further their options in the football industry.”
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