Mosah Mokganedi
10 October 2008
The national men softball team coach Sthando Kgosiyang has said preparations for the Zone VI championships billed for South Africa at the end of this month are at an advanced stage. Kgosiyang expressed optimism that his side will win the tournament this time round.
He said that currently, he has 25 players but the squad will be trimmed to 17 in a few weeks' time. He believes his team is ready to face the challenge, especially from South Africa. Kgosiyang said that local tournaments have helped his players to prepare and keep fit for the regional event. The team will go into full camp two weeks before departure to South Africa.
Kgosiyang's only worry is that one of his influential players, Tony Moyo who is currently plying his trade in the Dominican Republic will not be available.
He said it will take time to have a player of Moyo's calibre and they just have to learn to do without him. He said they cannot only rely on Moyo since age is also not on his side. He stated that many players have shown great potential.
Kgosiyang would have loved to include at least two Under-19 players in his squad to give them exposure but this will not be possible since most of the youngsters are students and are now busy preparing for exams. South Africa is the only side that has given Botswana a tough time in the Zone VI event.
However, Kgosiyang said this has changed and South Africa know what is in store for them. "We are no longer a walkover like in the past and they know it," the confident Kgosiyang said.
The last time Botswana beat South Africa in the Zone VI event was in 2003.
Kgosiyang said that though South Africa is good, its victory margins against Botswana have been decreasing in recent times. "You will realise that even when they beat us these days, the results are always close," he said. South Africa beat Botswana 5-3 in the last Zone VI tournament in Zambia last year.
Kgosiyang said there is always a lot at stake when they play South Africa either at national or club level. However, he said South African players are more experienced than his charges because they go for international training camps.
He said the Botswana league is not competitive enough to prepare national team players for international competitions.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Mmegi/The Reporter. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
