Makoanyane XI and Zimbabwe will meet for the third time this year after the local lads kicked their opponents out of continental African Youth Championship finals scheduled in Benin next year on 3-0 aggregate score. In an interview, the history making mentor Mr. Seepheephe "Mochine" Matete said the draw is fare and would give them an opportunity to prove beyond doubt that their victory over Zimbabwe was not a fluke though he believed that Malawi instead of Zimbabwe was supposed to be seed after the former reached the finals with champions Zambia last year.

However, Mr Matete said there is no reason why they could not proceed to the next round of the tournament in the expense of the likes of Madagascar and Swaziland who complement group C. He said they know the teams well, adding that he does not foresee any problems thus far. However he noted that complacency is the only thing they have to guard against.

Mochine pointed out that Group B that consists of the hosts South Africa, Seychelles, Mauritius and Angola is the toughest group while he highlighted that Zambia could face tough competition to reclaim the title against the host South Africa. Meanwhile, Mochine said the team has started preparations for the COSAFA regional tournament at Lesotho High School, saying they have roped in Lioli deadly striker Lintho Koro to beef up their striking force and to increase the level of competitiveness in the team.

He remarked that the tournament is a good platform for the local lads preparations ahead of the continental showpiece in Benin next year. Makoanyane XI and Angola would represent the Southern African region in the African Youth championship set for Benin.The local side were knocked out of the semifinals last year after being beaten by penalty shootouts by the host South Africa while Zambia were crowned champions after humiliating Malawi 4-0 in the finals. All the 13 countries in the Southern region are expected to take part in this year's event sponsored by Vodacom South Africa.

10 November 2004