Story by Mthokozisi Dube
HERENTALS College has cast the net wider after conducting a zonal tournament to tap into talent that can feed into the college’s football.
The College owns Premier Soccer League outfit, Herentals, a B team in the Division One league and a ladies team in the Zimbabwe Women’s Premier League, Herentals Queens.
With the teams relying largely on the talent within their parent owners’ colleges, efforts are being made to decentralise talent identification.
The college held its inaugural Southern Region Zonal tournament in Bulawayo this Friday, with players from Matebeleland North, Matabeleland South and Bulawayo participating.
The college held its inaugural Southern Region Zonal tournament in Bulawayo this Friday, with players from Matebeleland North, Matabeleland South and Bulawayo participating.
“It is the first of its kind. We normally have a national tournament, but this time around, we had to start at the zones where we will select teams for the national finals. We are going to be selecting talent for our teams. We are happy Focus has also included the girl child.
“Our tournament this time includes girls’ soccer. The whole idea is to give these learners an opportunity to graduate to our senior team. We are not only focusing on academic excellence, but we need those with sporting excellence to carve a path,” one of the Herentals college team members said.
Herentals College South Region manager for sport, Thulani Chiponda, commended athletes drawn from the three regions for giving it their all.
“We have decided to cast the net wide, our thrust is to capacitate and create an environment for talent to mature within our system. We have the talent which we believe can feed our two teams,” he said.
Herentals College’s approach is not solely focused on academic excellence but also on nurturing sporting talent, including women’s football development.
