AFRICAN SPORTS MONTHLY
'Sports is our Business'
  • Home
  • NEWS
  • Radio
  • TV

University of Pretoria guns for title

8/16/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
University of Pretoria Football Team (Photo Courtesy: varsitysportssa.com)

The University of Pretoria is the team to beat at the Varsity Cup. The team was established in 2012, just a year before the inauguration of the Varsity Cup and have since then won two out of the three titles.

Coach Evangelos Vellios has been with UP since the team’s inception and told The Daily Vox it’s been inspiring to work with such dedicated and ambitious young footballers.

“It has been tremendous experience,” he said.


Vellios and assistant coaches Tilisane Motaung and Steve Matlouwere pivotal in UP’s 2014 triumph. The team scored 13 points in seven games to advance to the knockout stage and finished in position three after the league stage.

“It was very tight,” Vellios said. “There was just two points separating number one and number four, number three to number five was also one point separating the teams.”

There are about 38 players in UP’s student football team, but only 25 make it to the Varsity Cup squad, with five on standby.

This year the team has a mix of youth and experience. “We have a core of players that have been with the team in 2013 and 2014. We got a couple of young stars that have been promoted from the U-19 team. I think they obviously gained experience from this group,” he said.

Vellios has high hopes for a new addition to the team – 19-year-old Leonel De Mendonca, a sports science student who came up through the academy ranks. De Mendonca plays in the back line.

“I’d like to win the tournament,” said PSL-hopeful De Mendonca. “But if we don’t [win], as a young star I most certainly will gain experience … Hopefully luck will be on our side.”

Vellios said the team is focusing scoring enough points during the league stage of the competition to finish in the top four and so secure a home semi-final in the knock-out stage.

For Vellios, the key to doing well in this competition is to play with good defensive strategy .

“We pride ourselves on clean sheets. In 2013 we had a lot of clean sheets – in nine matches, and all the way to the final, we kept six clean sheets. We build a foundation from a defensive point of view, so I think clean sheets will certainly help us win the competition,” he said.

If the team is to play defensively, they’re in good hands. David Ribero (23), a former AmaTuks PSL player, is formidable in goal and has his sights set on returning to the PSL.

“We’ve prepared well, like a professional team. The most important part is that we keep clean sheets,” Ribero told The Daily Vox.

Lawrence Ntswane, the team’s vice captain and a key defensive player, is one of the young stars to look out for during the competition. Midfielder Jeremiah Nkwana (22), who was joint top scorer in the World Students who also represents South Africa at U-20 level is another.

UP captain Robin Swartz (25), is back in competition after having spent much of last year on the bench due to injury. Swartz said that the mix of new and experienced are a boon for the team, with new players feeding off the energy of the veterans.

“We won the previous two competitions, but it does not get any less enjoyable, we are still very hungry,” he said.

By: Farai Diza
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013

    Menu

    All
    2014 FIFA World Cup
    Athletics
    Basketball
    Boxing
    Commonwealth Games
    Cricket
    Golf
    Hockey
    Marathons
    News
    Olympics
    Rugby
    Soccer
    Spotlight
    Tennis
    Track And Field
    Volleyball
    Women Soccer
    Wrestling


    Picture

    RSS Feed


    Tweets by ASMONTHLY

Tweet to @ASMONTHLY

Contact Us

    Contact Us

Submit

Donate & Support Our Efforts at African Sports Media Network