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Soccer

Intellectually impaired players do South Africa proud

───   14:03 Fri, 29 Aug 2014

Intellectually impaired players do South Africa proud | News Article
Bloemfontein - The South African soccer team for intellectually impaired players finished second in the overall standings at the recent Inas World Football Championship held in Sao Paolo, Brazil after losing 4-2 to Saudi Arabia in the final. The competition ran from 11 - 24 August, 2014.
 
The team, under the guidance of the University of the Free State football team coach, Godfrey Tenoff, reached the final of the competition following impressive performances throughout.
 
Tenoff lauded the teams’ performance, saying that the positive attitude and determination displayed contributed to what he described as a successful competition.
 
“The team played extremely well, losing to the defending champions Saudi Arabia, was a huge achievement. I’m proud with the way they performed. I think for them to finish second is phenomenal and has made the country proud,” he told OFM Sport.
 
“They (Saudi Arabia) are a well organised and disciplined team. They are an experienced team because most of their players have played in all three World Cups they have won.”
 
The side had a bold start to the competition, crushing Sweden 10-1 and France 3-0 in their opening matches of the group stages. Despite the positive start, their semi-final aspirations nearly suffered a blow when they were stunned 6-1 by Saudi Arabia in their last group match.
 
The team reached the semi-final, where they battled for a final spot against Poland, the side that had not lost in the group stages. However, they won on penalties after 1-1 draw in regulation time to setup a date with the three-time champions.
 
“The top six teams are good and I am happy that SA finished amongst the best. The guys applied themselves as much as they could and were happy to be in the tournament,” Tenoff concluded.
 
Tenoff first became involved in the side when they made use of the University of the Free States’ facilities for a training camp in September last year and was subsequently asked to take charge of the team in March.
 
The Kovsies mentor will return for his side’s last Varsity Football match in the round-robin stages when they host North West University at Shimla Park on Monday, 1 September.
 
Lee Khotlele / OFM News

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