15 August 2018 –SAFA’s King Cetshwayo regional president, Bright Gumede, applauded the Association’s commitment in developing coaches throughout the country, adding that this will benefit the country’s football in years to come.

Gumede, who was speaking ahead of the SAFA’s grassroots football development coaching D licence course in Richards Bay which kicked off on Tuesday, 14 August 2018 and will run until 18 August 2018, stated that having well equipped coaches, especially from developmental stages of any player, will play a crucial role producing quality players which will make the country proud in years to come.

“This is a great initiative because you would find that there are coaches who are working with our children, however, without the proper knowhow on how to develop our young ones into well rounded players for the future,” Gumede said.

“This then creates a problem when it comes to early talent identification and nurturing the gifts of our young players. This is where this grassroots football development coaching course comes in. This Safa coaching D Licence will play a crucial role in ensuring that our coaches go back home well equipped with the required skills in developing the young talent we have our region. And that’s what we want.

“The age group we are targeting when it comes to football development it’s between the ages 6 and 13,” Gumede added. “That’s a very crucial developmental stage of any player. Look at a player like (Lionel) Messi for an example. At age 10 he was already being monitored to ensure that he grows and develops into a top world renowned player that he is today. And that’s what we want to achieve when it comes to developing of players in this country. We want to be able to identify and make sure we encourage the growth and development of our players, focusing on their unique gifts they possess whenever they are out there on the field of play.”

Meanwhile, the King Cetshwayo regional president also added that he would like to encourage all coaches who are participating in this course, to go for their SAFA C coaching licence as well after completing this course, as this will see them evolving into more informed aspiring professional gaffers as well.

“We’d also like to encourage our coaches that they must never rest on their laurels after requiring this Safa D Licence qualification,” Gumede said. “They must also go for their SAFA C Licence as well. We are already making plans to see to it that we have that course taking place in the near future. And that’s how serious we take football development in this region.”