The champions of the Maruleng Winter Tournament, the Thulamahashe Stallions, who hail from Bushbuckridge, were one of 32 teams that showed their competitors what they were made of at the Enable Sports Grounds in Ga-Skororo, Tzaneen.
The final was played on July 16. The Stallions’ management team, Karel Sibuyana and Dumazi Mkhonto, decided to let their players take part in the tournament to showcase their skills.
“We saw an opportunity for our Bushbuckridge players to go and express themselves and showcase their talent in Tzaneen. We took on the challenge,” said Sibuyana.
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Mkhonto said they assembled a very good, well-balanced team by selecting players with experience and upcoming youngsters. Their expert strategic coach, Vincent Chawane, used the team’s varying strengths to ensure a win. Chawane had nothing but praise for his players and team management.
“For us, every match was an away game. The environment was not friendly at all, but the team spirit was always very high. We ended up winning the support of the locals when we conquered Maruleng. We won on and off the field. We had good management and the players were willing to die on the field for this,” he said.
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He also said his team had to travel from Bushbuckridge to Ga-Skororo every weekend. “This was very challenging, but they soldiered on until the end.”
The elated Stallions walked away with prize money of R50 000, a soccer ball and a trophy.
The Bushbuckridge boys played five games, scored four goals and did not concede a single goal during the tournament. Their goalkeeper, Tebatso Magonyane, won Goalkeeper of the Tournament, while the team captain, Thabo Mashigo, won Player of the Tournament.
