We will be ready, Da Gama

The dream of playing in front of a packed stadium and live TV is slowly edging closer for the Nedbank Ke Yona Team.

They will be facing the 2014 Nedbank Cup Champions, Orlando Pirates, on a date still to be announced. It has been months of mental and physical training for the Ke Yona stars in preparation for an iconic clash against the Buccaneers.

The team has been hard at work under the watchful eye of coaches Shakes Mashaba, Khabo Zondo, Owen Da Gama and Mike Mangena, and will soon be ready for the Pirates clash. Coach Owen Da Gama concedes that the match against Pirates will be a tough one, but strongly believes that his charges will be ready to take on the Soweto giants.

Rubber Doll, as the former Platinum Stars coach is affectionately known, said that the team has responded positively to their tactics and instructions, and come match day, they will be ready.

“We have a huge task ahead of us in taking on Orlando Pirates,” he said.

“The boys are fired up and eager to go onto the pitch, but we still need to sharpen certain areas, both in attack and defence. We have a formidable squad this year but you need to be very sharp against a quality side like Pirates.

“This week’s training camp will be used to fine-tune all our shortcomings and work on our strengths. I can confidently declare that we will give Pirates a good run for their money,” said Da Gama.

Pirates coach, Vladimir Vermezovic, welcomed the idea of playing against the Nedbank side and hopes that the Ke Yona Team gains valuable experience on the day. “I think this is a great opportunity for football development in the country, it is a good initiative from the sponsors.”

A total of 45 players from KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Limpopo, Western Cape and Gauteng were identified through the Nedbank Ke Yona Team Search, where thousands of football hopefuls raised their hands in response to Nedbank’s call to make their football dreams happen.