19 October 2018 Head coach of the South African U-17 Women’s National Team has acquired the services of a private tutor for her players who are already in a training camp ahead of the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Uruguay.

The tutor, Amukelani Palmer, will assist the players with their studying because the preparations for the World Cup take place during the school examination period in South Africa. Dludlu has also made provision and arrangements for some of the players to write their exams during camp, and also during the tournament.

Palmer is a pivotal member of the management staff and takes classes with the players on a daily basis, to help them prepare for their final exams. She will also monitor them while they write their schools examinations in Uruguay.

Dludlu has emphasized the importance of juggling the FIFA World Cup preparations and writing the school exams, and insists that education is key despite the fact the players are on the bridge of making history.

“It is important that the players still focus on school and we are happy that the University of Johannesburg (UJ) has given us a tutor to be part of the team,” said Dludlu.

“Palmer is playing a very important role in the team, and I am grateful for her presence to help my players with their studying.

“We have designed our program to ensure that we get the best out of the players during this difficult period of their lives. We allow them to study every morning, and those that have to write their exams will do so in the mornings as well before we train.

Added Dludlu: “Education is key, and we have told our players that to become world class professionals, they will need to learn how to juggle between their school and football careers”.

The 2018 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup takes place between 13 November 2018 and 1 December. The South African National Under-17 Women’s side travel to Uruguay next weekend (Saturday, 27 November 2018) to continue their preparations.

They will also play two friendly matches before their opening fixture of the tournament where they will face Mexico in Group B on 13 November 2018 in Maldonado, Uruguay.