The NMMU-Madibaz football team have been promoted to the SAB League following their performance in the annual SAFA Nelson Mandela Bay Regional League playoffs at the KwaDwesi football fields in Port Elizabeth.
The current PEFA champions went up against 11 other teams – who won their respective groups under the Local Football Association – to see who would take up the two available slots in next season’s SAFA-NMB SAB League, which kicks off in the first week of September.
The Madibaz beat Winter Rose (New Brighton Football Association) 2-0 in their opening match, courtesy of a Claudius Sagandira brace.
The second match was more convincing as Kieran Koert showed his scoring ability by grabbing a hat-trick before Zantsi Fuzo rounded off the 4-1 victory over Eleven Wizards from Kuyga.
In their final match, Nodefa’s Manchester United were no match for NMMU as they claimed a 5-3 win to secure their spot in the SAB League.
The promotion to the third tier of South African football serves as a confidence boost ahead of the Varsity Football tournament which gets underway on July 20.
“The Madibaz will compete against the top universities in the country with greater sport budgets, bursaries and established professional football network systems in their respective provinces,” manager Mark Tommy said.
He added that the institution’s success was indicative of a promising football programme but that it required co-operation and a joint venture with the private sector to build on the potential within the metro.
“We are excited about the opportunities within student sport and the development of football in the metro. We believe an academy would provide the perfect conduit to develop a football strategy that will eventually translate into an NMMU-based National First Division side,” he added.
Tommy invited relevant role-players within the private sector and non-governmental organisations to engage in this process to ensure that NMMU could compete with the top footballing universities in the country.
