Amajita back in action

The South African u20 National Team (Amajita) leave for Namibia on 19 May to play the hosts in the CAF u20 African championships second round qualifier at Sam Nujoma Stadium in Windhoek.

The South African u20 National Team (Amajita) leave for Namibia on 19 May to play the hosts in the CAF u20 African championships second round qualifier at Sam Nujoma Stadium in Windhoek.

The match will take place on Saturday, 21 May and kicks off at 15h00.

The Thabo Senong-coached team had a bye in the first round while Namibia beat Swaziland 4-2 on aggregate in the first round to book a date with Amajita.

The second leg will be played in South Africa on 11 June at a venue still to be decided. The winner of the South Africa/Namibia clash will play either Mozambique or Lesotho in the third and final round of the CAF U-20 African Youth Championships which will be played in Zambia from 26 February 2017 to 12 March 2017.

In the meantime, coach Senong has selected a provisional squad of 35 players, with the bulk of the team having graduated from the national u17 squad which participated at the FIFA U17 World Cup in Chile. He will trim the team to the required 20 next week ahead of their departure on Thursday, 19 May.

Senong said having travelled to Windhoek to watch Namibia, he was confident Amajita have the measure of the western neighbours.

“It is great to be back in action, and we are excited about our prospects. We will be reporting for camp tomorrow on Thursday and have invited 35 players to be looked at. We will then cut the squad down to 20 players this coming Sunday.

“The talent that these boys have is just unbelievable. However, playing against Namibia will not be a walk in the park, but I am confident the boys will do the country proud,” said Senong.