The nominees for this year’s Varsity Women’s Football Player of the Tournament award will all appear in Monday’s final at Tuks Stadium.

Winger Molatelo Kobo and central midfielder Amogelang Motau helped UWC to reach their fifth Varsity Women’s Football final in the past six tournaments and will be hoping they can carry them to their first title.

Striker Wendy Shongwe set the tone for Tuks’ campaign with an FNB Player of the Match performance in their opening win against TUT, and another big effort from her on Monday could put her university’s name on the trophy for the first time.

After the group stage of the tournament, the Varsity Women’s Football head coaches each selected three nominees for the award. The coaches ranked their nominees from first to third place, with first position worth three points, second position two points and third position one point.

The player who received the most points from the coaches’ votes will be presented with the award after the final.

Player of the Tournament nominees:

Molatelo Kobo (UWC)
The winger did not find the back of the net in their 4-0 semi-final win against Wits, but she made it easier for her teammates to do so. She turned the defenders in and out, and skinned them to provide assists of the highest level. When Kobo is not overlapping, she is helping the defence. She showed her class during a tactical battle in the opening game against UJ by scoring and creating an assist. Kobo uses her pace to good effect and never runs out of energy. She opens up the defence with killer passes and is not a selfish player. Her unbelievable work rate drove UWC forward in the tournament and she makes running down the flanks look easy. 

Amogelang Motau (UWC)
Motau rarely finds the back of the net because she does the dirty work in the middle of the field. However, when she does, she scores spectacular goals. Motau makes the game look easy. She dictates the terms and reads the game to perfection. She hardly put a foot wrong in UWC’s journey to the final. Motau links up well with the front-line players and is calm on the ball. UWC have not been tested because of their solid display in midfield. Motau can turn the game on its head with a sublime pass out of nowhere. In a team full of stars, Motau stood head and shoulders above her teammates. Her maturity on the ball is second to none and she knows how to slow down the game to frustrate the opposition.

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Wendy Shongwe (Tuks)
Shongwe has unbelievable leadership qualities. The forward carried her team to the final, scoring a couple of goals along the way. She motivates her teammates to focus for 90 minutes, while assisting, scoring and defending. She brings the fear factor to the opposition. and her work rate speaks volumes. The striker kept defenders on their toes in the group stage, and showed no signs of fatigue in their 2-1 semi-final win against UJ. She is calm on the ball, knows how to pick her spot and has a tidy finish. She also draws fouls and can take set-pieces and penalties. Shongwe is a player for the big occasion and proved that by producing an FNB Player of the Match performance in the Tshwane derby against TUT in their opening game.  

– The 2021 Varsity Women’s Football final between UWC and Tuks will kick off at 17:00 on Monday and be broadcast live on SuperSport Variety 4 (DStv channel 209).

PREVIEW: 2021 Varsity Football women’s final – UWC vs Tuks