SPORT -
| 2013-07-30Hochland High clinch Academia soccer tournament
Conrad Angula
THE CHAMPS … Jubilant players of the Hochland under-19 team celebrating their Academia Secondary School soccer tournament success after a hard-fought final against the powerful Kolin Foundation Secondary School from Arandis.
A fired up Hochland High School defeated the powerful Kolin Foundation 2-1 in the final of the under-19 category to claim victory in the inaugural Academia Secondary School soccer tournament, held at the school’s sports field last Saturday.
Player of the Tournament, Henrico Swartz of Hochland High, continued his exceptional form throughout the tournament when he scored the opening goal for the winners midway through the opening half to give his side a 1-0 lead at halftime.
The exciting winger was firing from all cylinders throughout the tournament and it was only befitting that he netted the opening goal of the final to finish the event with two goals.
The match exploded in the second half after the towering Profilius Haifiku scored the equaliser for the visiting school from Arandis, to ensure a thrilling finale to the exciting encounter.
With Hochland being the dominent force in the opening stanza, the scale of superiority was more balanced in the final half as the boys of Kolin proved to be too strong physically, while the Windhoek lads were boosted by their ability to keep possession as well as for their individual brilliance.
The encounter was headed for the dreaded penalty shootout before Hochland’s Eugene Angula’s moment of brilliance saw him control a pass from Swartz, before he calmly tipped the ball out of the reach of the outstretched arms of the Kolin goalkeeper to score what turned out to be the match-winner to finish the tournament on two goals.
Apart from the silver medals they collected, Kolin, who reached the final by virtue of their 4-2 penalty shootout victory over JA Nel from Keetmanshoop in the semifinal after they finished the match 1-1 at regulation time, their midfielder Dominic van Wyk received the Top Scorer gong after finishing the tournament with an impressive four goals.
Hochland’s victory was a continuation of their fine form throughout the tournament which saw them also downing the hosts 2-1 in the opening match, before they went on to oust Kuiseb Secondary 0-1 to book their place in the final against Kolin.
According Terence Gurirab, teacher and head coach of Academia, the event is going to take place annually as a fundraising effort of the host school.
The tournament started a fortnight ago but the final was postponed to last Saturday because it could not fit into the programme because the venue doesn’t have floodlights.
“I can confidently declare that the tournament was a resounding success and we as hosts were thrilled by the level of competition from the players. The schools also showed their tremendous support for our efforts and we were happy with the large number of entries,” Gurirab said.
The tournament came in handy for the young players in the absence of a recognisable national soccer tournament and, by the level of enthusiasm expressed by the players throughout the three days of competition, it can be described as a welcome addition to the junior soccer calender.
Kuisebmond Secondary finished top of the under-15 round-robin tournament followed by hosts Academia with Higher Technical School Windhoek taking third place.
The exciting winger was firing from all cylinders throughout the tournament and it was only befitting that he netted the opening goal of the final to finish the event with two goals.
The match exploded in the second half after the towering Profilius Haifiku scored the equaliser for the visiting school from Arandis, to ensure a thrilling finale to the exciting encounter.
With Hochland being the dominent force in the opening stanza, the scale of superiority was more balanced in the final half as the boys of Kolin proved to be too strong physically, while the Windhoek lads were boosted by their ability to keep possession as well as for their individual brilliance.
The encounter was headed for the dreaded penalty shootout before Hochland’s Eugene Angula’s moment of brilliance saw him control a pass from Swartz, before he calmly tipped the ball out of the reach of the outstretched arms of the Kolin goalkeeper to score what turned out to be the match-winner to finish the tournament on two goals.
Apart from the silver medals they collected, Kolin, who reached the final by virtue of their 4-2 penalty shootout victory over JA Nel from Keetmanshoop in the semifinal after they finished the match 1-1 at regulation time, their midfielder Dominic van Wyk received the Top Scorer gong after finishing the tournament with an impressive four goals.
Hochland’s victory was a continuation of their fine form throughout the tournament which saw them also downing the hosts 2-1 in the opening match, before they went on to oust Kuiseb Secondary 0-1 to book their place in the final against Kolin.
According Terence Gurirab, teacher and head coach of Academia, the event is going to take place annually as a fundraising effort of the host school.
The tournament started a fortnight ago but the final was postponed to last Saturday because it could not fit into the programme because the venue doesn’t have floodlights.
“I can confidently declare that the tournament was a resounding success and we as hosts were thrilled by the level of competition from the players. The schools also showed their tremendous support for our efforts and we were happy with the large number of entries,” Gurirab said.
The tournament came in handy for the young players in the absence of a recognisable national soccer tournament and, by the level of enthusiasm expressed by the players throughout the three days of competition, it can be described as a welcome addition to the junior soccer calender.
Kuisebmond Secondary finished top of the under-15 round-robin tournament followed by hosts Academia with Higher Technical School Windhoek taking third place.
