Build It soccer and netball tournament helps to boost sport in township schools
The Build-It School Sports Day brought together children from various schools who competed in football and netball at the Phelandaba Sports Field in Madadeni.
These annual games for under 13s boys and girls are organised to showcase local talent. Sipho Mlangeni, manager of Build It in Madadeni, explained that the primary goal is to highlight hidden talent in local schools.
“Apart from the fact that we want to give back to the community because the parents of these children are the ones who support us by buying building materials, the main purpose of this tournament is to bring back the culture of playing sports in schools,” he said
“We want to reinvigorate the culture of school sports, starting with primary schools where much of the talent emerges,” Mlangeni said.
Participating schools included Ingwe Primary, Zabalaza Primary, Cebelihle Primary, Sipheni Primary, Esididini Primary, Zithutukise Primary, Fairbreeze Primary, Mlamleli Primary, and Ndabanhle Primary, among others.
One of the challenges faced by the school sports committee was trying to root out the practice of falsifying the ages of the players.
Russel Mdinisi of the committee said there are ‘still cheaters who continue to be the rotten potatoes in school soccer.’
“Checking the ages of the players remains a challenging task as deceitful practices such as manipulating the age of players are still prevalent in soccer. The committee closely monitored participants to ensure compliance with age regulations during the Build It sports day where only players under 13 were eligible.”
A keen eye was kept on the participants to ensure fairness and that ‘age competed against age’.
“However, there were those who took chances. The committee has issued a stern warning to those tempted to alter players’ ages, emphasizing that such actions not only jeopardize the players’ future but also threaten the school’s reputation. It also puts at risk the future of the school principal and everyone involved in the falsification of documents submitted.”
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