To honour her late father-in-law, Simon Mbhele who was born in KwaDumisa, Emzimlilo in the Ugu District, businesswoman Felicity Ntombintombi Mbhele hosted the 6th annual Simon Mbhele 5-a-side street soccer tournament in Gamalakhe recently.
The tournament has become a festive tradition in the area as many soccer teams from the district and as far as Umlazi, along with locals look forward to it.
The tournament aims to redress social ills among the youth while promoting unity and cohesion among communities.
The founder, Arthur Mbhele, the son of the late Simon Mbhele said the tournament also contributes to the empowerment of small businesses and creates temporary job opportunities.
“This year saw many locals getting temporary employment. Youth were hired to cut grass and clean the venue, and those with hiring services also got a piece of the pie. We also hired officiating and games administration personnel and allowed those with food businesses to put up stalls.”
The final saw Butternut FC battle it out with Monaco FC, and Monaco was crowned the winner of the tournament,
“Monaco FC took home a cash prize of R10 000 while Butternut FC took home R3 000. The tournament was sponsored by Ray Nkonyeni Municipality and the ANC Tolomane Mnyayiza Region. We thank all the participating teams, the community who came out in numbers to support and the sponsors for making it a huge success,”Mbhele concluded.
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