The 2012 Future Champions Gauteng International Tournament Day 03

Johannesburg, Wednesday, 28 March 2012 – The final round of group matches of the 2012 Future Champions Gauteng were played on Wednesday, producing the four semi-finalists for this year’s event that is taking place at the Nike Training Centre in Pimville, Soweto.

A total of 22 goals were scored on a frenetic third day of action which saw defending champions Clube Atletico Mineiro of Brazil, Uruguay’s Nacional, K-Stars from Zambia and Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven book their place in the Last 4.

The football continued to be of the highest standard on Day Three, with this prestigious Under-17 international tournament living up to its reputation as one of the most eagerly anticipated on the junior football calendar.

K-Stars qualified for the semi-finals with an impressive 4-2 victory over New England Revolution from the USA. Joseph Mukomena netted a brace for the Zambians, to go with goals from Albert Ngosa and Ackin Mumba. Casey Schehl and Christian Sady scored consolations for New England, who finish second in the pool.

Botswana’s Gaborone Young Zebras finished their group play in style with a 3-0 success over South Africa’s Mohloli High School, with Tsotlhe Leshetla, Thatayaone Ramatlapeng and Kabelano Mooketsane among the goals.

Nacional made sure that they topped Group B as they put five goals past the School of Excellence. Marcos Labandeira moved joint top of the goal-scorers charts when his brace took his tally to four for the tournament, with further goals coming from Richard Dorrego, Gaston Pereiro and Leandro Otormin.

Orlando Pirates FC had to be content with second spot in the pool, despite their 3-0 win over Ghana’s FC Nania that came after goals from Siyanda Ngcobo (two), who also has four now for the tournament, and Bongani Khanyile.

Defending champions Clube Atletico Mineiro were made to work hard but eventually overcame Aspire Academy from Qatar with a 2-1 win. Carlos and Ze Alberto scored for them, with Nasser Ibrahim netting a superb long-range effort for the Qataris.

PSV Eindhoven booked their place in the Last 4 when they defeated South Africa’s Bidvest Wits 2-0, with Clint Leemans getting his second of the tournament and Mohamad Mahmoed on the score-sheet as well.

The players will have a rest on Thursday when they will be taken on a tour of Soweto that will include a visit to the FNB Stadium, scene of the 2010 FIFA World Cup final between Spain and Netherlands.

But the action will resume on Friday as the winners of each pool move forward to the semi-finals, with the rest of the teams involved in play-offs to determine their final position in the tournament. The Final and last of the play-off matches will be played on Saturday.

K-Stars will meet Clube Atletico Mineiro in the first semi-finals, with Nacional facing up to PSV Eindhoven in the second.

The play-off matches will see an all-South African affair between School of Excellence and Bidvest Wits, before FC Nania take on Mohloli High School. New England Revolution will meet the Aspire Academy and Orlando Pirates FC take on the Young Zebras.

The Final and remaining play-off matches will be played on Saturday.

The Future Champions Gauteng tournament, organised by Global Sports International on behalf of the Gauteng Provincial Government, has grown into one of the top Under-17 competitions on the global football calendar and is now in its fourth year.

Boca Juniors from Argentina were crowned champions in 2009, with Chinese side Shandong Luneng victors in 2010. Clube Atletico Mineiro was the first Brazilian winners when they triumphed last year.

WEDNESDAY’S RESULTS
K-Stars 4 (Joseph Mukomena 2, Albert Ngosa, Ackin Mumba) New England Revolution 2 (Casey Schehl, Christian Sady)
Young Zebras 3 (Tsotlhe Leshetla, Thatayaone Ramatlapeng, Kabelano Mooketsane) Mohloli High School 0
Nacional 5 (Marcos Labandeira 2, Richard Dorrego, Gaston Pereiro, Leandro Otormin) School of Excellence 0
Orlando Pirates FC 3 (Siyanda Ngcobo 2, Bongani Khanyile) FC Nania 0
Clube Atletico Mineiro 2 (Carlos, Ze Alberto) Aspire Academy 1 (Nasser Ibrahim)
PSV Eindhoven 2 (Mohamad Mahmoed, Clint Leemans) Bidvest Wits 0

FRIDAY’S FIXTURES
10h00 Play-offÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ School of Excellence vs Bidvest Wits
11h15 Play-offÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ FC Nania vs Mohloli High School
12h30 Play-offÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ New England Revolution vs Aspire Academy
13h45 Play-offÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ Orlando Pirates FC vs Young Zebras
15h00 SemifinalÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ K-Stars vs Clube Atletico Mineiro
17h00 SemifinalÂÂÂÂÂÂÂÂ Nacional vs PSV Eindhoven

STANDINGS
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TOURNAMENT STATS
Matches played: 18
Goals scored: 56
Biggest victory: Nacional 5 School of Excellence 0
Most goals in a game: 6 – New England Revolution 3 School of Excellence 3; K-Stars 4 New England Revolution 2

Topscorers:
4 – Marcos Labandeira (Nacional), Siyanda Ngcobo (Orlando Pirates FC)

3 – Yago (Clube Atletico Mineiro)

2 – Carlos (Clube Atletico Mineiro), Clint Leemans (PSV Eindhoven), Tshepo Mashigo (School of Excellence), Joseph Mukomena (K-Stars), Emmanuel Mumba (K-Stars), Gaston Pereiro (Nacional), Thembinkosi Phiri (Bidvest Wits), Thatayaone Ramatlapeng (Young Zebras), Ze Alberto (Clube Atletico Mineiro)

1 – Joshua Aditser (FC Nania), Ahmed Al-Sadi (Aspire Academy), Collins Asare (FC Nania), Sultan Bakhit (Aspire Academy), Davy Daka (K-Stars), Mawolo Gissie (New England Revolution), Richard Dorrego (Nacional), Guyllain Kabala (New England Revolution), David Kashanga (K-Stars), Bongani Khanyile (Orlando Pirates FC), Amadu Kunateh (New England Revolution), Tsotlhe Leshetla (Young Zebras), Johnfer Luna (Nacional), Mohamad Mahmoed (PSV Eindhoven), Marcelo (Clube Atletico Mineiro), Tshidiso Monamodi (Bidvest Wits), Kabelano Mooketsane (Young Zebras), Kabelo Moshane (School of Excellence), Albert Ngosa (K-Stars), Nhalanipho Ntuli (Orlando Pirates FC), Leandro Otormin (Nacional), Moses Raphepele (School of Excellence), Christian Sady (New England Revolution), Casey Schehl (New England Revolution), Jouneid Yachou (PSV Eindhoven), own goal

For further information and results, please visit:

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http://twitter.com/FutureChampsU17

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  • We had a wonderful football and cultural experience in Gauteng. The tournament and activities were very well organized and we found everyone involved extremely helpful and accommodating. We have all returned home with fantastic memories of our time in South Africa, both on and off the pitch, and have made many new friends as a result of the trip. I hope that we are invited to participate in future tournaments.

    Everton Academy Head Coach

  • The experience both on and off the field for our players during the Future Champions tournament in Gauteng was life-enriching for all those who participated. We were privileged enough to win this edition but what will be bringing us back in future is the cross-cultural education our players receive from spending time with athletes from all over the world. They are human beings before they are football players and enriching them with other cultures is as rewarding as the experience they receive on the field.

    Club Tijuana Director of Football

  • After twenty years of experiencing tournaments around the globe, Future Champions is hands down the best organized, well run International Tournament we have ever participated in. Bringing teams from dozens of different countries provided our boys exposure to cultural diversity they only read about in textbooks. It’s amazing how sport can be the cultural link that provides the opportunity to interact with each other and discover that our global community is a bit smaller than they realized. We had a football and cultural experience that will be cherished for the rest of our lives.

    Director of USYSA Select

  • For us to compete in Future Champions is much more than playing a series of matches. It is an opportunity to compete and contrast our level against the best teams from around the world and the possibility of living in another culture and environment for an unforgettable week, learning about the history of the fight for human rights.

    Director of Aspire Academy

  • The addition of a girls’ competition this year is a natural expansion for what has become a hugely popular event. Over and above the football, the players are also exposed to life-skills courses and HIV/AIDS awareness that could end up saving their lives in the future. We have had an amazing partnership with the Gauteng Province over the last decade and we thank each and every stakeholder for making the Future Champions Gauteng campaign such a huge success

    Tournament director