KZN Veterans’ Football Club left for Dubai on Monday, 28 November for a friendly soccer tournament in Dubai. Twenty-five members of the club, including 11 from the Escombe Veterans’ Football Club, left the country in high spirits to play against teams from India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, Mauritius, Italy, and the hosts, United Arab Emirates.
“The matches are set for a five-day period and we are very excited as it will be the first time for some players to travel overseas. For others it is to meet friends and make new acquaintances. These matches will be played competitively in the spirit of fair play and comradery. No winner is declared in the end because everybody is a winner,” explained club chairman, Ronnie Chetty.
The eight teams will play seven matches each and the first kick off for the veterans on Wednesday in a match against Singapore. The team is made up of players over the age of 40 and have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the game with almost all of them having played soccer most of their lives.
“We have been playing for various clubs but formed this club three years ago. The team is made up of a group of friends, colleagues and anyone who has the club philosophy. Our players are between 40 and 62, among them are former professional players and coaches. Our idea of forming this club was to get the ex-players and coaches off the sofa and armchair and back on the field to help them improve their health and well being, to empower, and educate the youth through football,” he said.
Chetty said the team is well prepared for the friendly tournament in Dubai. They train twice a week, playing friendly matches most weekends. “We would like to place on record our sincere thanks to all our sponsors, well-wishers, friends and all our players’ families for allowing them this time to live their dream,” he added.
Jeffrey Govender, Public Relations Officer at Escombe Veterans FC expressed his gratitude to their sponsors. “The sponsorship has assisted us by providing us with a complete kit to represent our team as a professional outfit at the Dubai International Tournament. Psychologically this will make the players perform better. We have been battling to raise funds to purchase gear for the tour and this sponsorship has assisted us tremendously in this respect,” he said.
