Wits burst into Varsity Football, Wits women’s side qualify for inaugural showing
- Tshepiso Mametela
Impressive showings by both the Wits men’s and women’s football teams at the recently concluded USSA National Institutional Football Tournament held at Marks Park and Sturrock Park have booked the institution’s place in next year’s Varsity Football competition.
Notably, it is the first time in the University’s history that the women’s side will be contesting the Women’s Varsity Football tournament. The incredible feat comes a year after the Wits women’s team qualified for the Sasol League, in another first, under the leadership of the former Banyana Banyana star, Nthabeleng Modiko, who took charge as head coach of the women’s outfit in 2017.
Fast forward two years and the accolades continue to pour in for Modiko and her chargers. At the Annual Wits Sport Awards in September, Modiko proudly watched on as her star striker, Shakeerah Jacobs, clinched the Junior Sportswoman of the Year award for 2019. Modiko attributed the club’s latest success to the commitment of players such as Jacobs and others, who in spite of academic commitments and the stress of exams, gave it their all en route to a third-place finish (bronze) at USSA after beating TUT 5-4 on penalties.
“The preparation was quite strenuous as we didn’t get to have a lot of our players on time,” said Modiko. “The Sasol League was running up until 2 November and that was deep within the exam season at Wits, and so, we needed to cater for the students and their need to study.”
The experience of players, who had already put on their inaugural Sasol League boots up until a month before USSA week, was invaluable to the teams’ cause as it supported the younger and more inexperienced players once the annual inter-University week-long spectacle kicked-off, according to the coach. “The help of the players that were already campaigning in the Sasol League came in handy, along with their experience, which made things easier as we were [essentially] mixing a junior and senior team together,” said Modiko.
The 1st team men’s head coach, Mark Haskins, beamed happily at yet another Varsity Football berth for his outfit. “Varsity Football is, by and large, our most prestigious competition purely based on the fact that it is [broadcast] on national TV,” said Haskins, who punted the value of the Varsity Football platform. He added that it bodes tremendously with the women’s side now making strides where their male counterparts have, for the past few seasons.
“Even bigger than the men making it for next year’s tournament, the women have not only qualified, but were the third-best team and were voted Team of the Tournament at the USSA Nationals,” added Haskins. “It speaks wonders of the strides they have made as a team that was never in contention for anything, but has now become the third-best female Varsity team in the country.”
