VIDEO + GALLERY: Friendly tournaments unite Johannesburg South youth

The South African Roller Hockey Federation and Uniao Portuguese club hosted a sports day and brought together the youth of Johannesburg South on November 21.

The event held at Turffontein featured soccer and roller hockey matches which were played all day and included a variety of Gauteng clubs that also attended.

They also opened the indoor arena to a free skating session for everyone with a pair of skates to join in on the fun.
There was plenty of activity both inside the arena and outside on the outdoor soccer pitch while strict Covid-19 protocols were observed.

Lianne Mauricio of SA Roller Hockey Federation said the friendly tournament was hosted amid the sport being affected by the pandemic.

“The year has been a bit of a disaster and the youth in the South have not had much opportunity to play, especially in organised sport. We are hoping that by showcasing the sport we can encourage more of the youth in the South to play sport,” she said.

She also encouraged youngsters to sign up for roller hockey, which according to Mauricio is a little known sport in South Africa.

WATCH: A video showing senior teams taking each other on

Jocks Coimbra, president of the SA Roller Hockey Federation, told the CHRONICLE they wanted to reach out to everyone and familiarise people to the sport.

“We thought of having an open day today after being inactive for months on end, in order to de-rust our wheels. This was a fun way of letting everyone know we are still around. We had five categories taking part and this was a good turnout,” he said.

For roller hockey scores, infants’ Lions secured 5 and Tigers got 3, juveniles’ Lions 11 and Tigers 13, while seniors’ Lions 5 and Tigers 7.

Junior teams also went head-on with Tigers securing a 6 win against Lions with 3, and seniors’ Tigers 7 with Lions 5.