Makhitha Iyarunga FC were crowned the champions of the Erling Matika Soccer Challenge at Tshikota on Saturday.
The tournament was organised by the ANC's Songozwi branch. According to the chairperson of the branch, Mr Bethuel Rasisu, they had organised the event to honour the late Erling Matika, who had produced stars such as Lesley Manyathela, Thabo Mongala, Michael Moloto and many more who played in PSL teams. He thanked the sponsors and said that the organisers were proud that they had grown young people of real quality.
A local member of parliament, Mr Moses Tseli, was the guest speaker during the prize-giving ceremony. He stated that it is important that future stars' talent should be identified at grassroots level. He applauded sponsors Wearne for helping to identify the talent of the region's youth and added that the youth of this region should be proud of their talent and that they should be exposed to bigger teams.
"Government alone cannot meet all the needs of its people, except when public partnerships are the desired objectives," Tseli said.
Four teams participated during the tournament. The champions, Makhitha Iyarunga, went home with R3 000, a floating trophy and gold medals, while the runners-up, Matika FC, collected R1 500, a soccer ball and silver medals. The two teams who lost in the first matches, Magau United and Tshikota Chelsea, each received R500 each and soccer balls.