COSAFA leaves a legacy in Nelson Mandela Bay as TSG proves pipeline is strong

COSAFA has been involved in numerous initiatives on the sidelines of the 2021 COSAFA Women’s Championship to leave a legacy in Nelson Mandela Bay that will last long after the tournament has finished.

As is the norm for COSAFA, the organisation has conducted a range of courses, junior tournaments and CSI initiatives so that the local communities can benefit from the regional showpiece event that concludes on Saturday.

The idea is that wherever COSAFA goes, they provide skills and training to local budding players, coaches and administrators, and also benefit the wider community through the hand-over of essential goods.

This is no more evident than in the Technical Study Group (TSG), who assess the quality of the 2021 COSAFA Women’s Championship and the latest trends in coaching and playing styles that emerge from the competition.

This year’s group is made up of South Africans Douleen Witbooi, Gayroenisa Daniels and Leah Sweetness Masango, as well as Beauty Mwamba from Zambia.

Witbooi, Masango and Mwamba were selected after they were stand-out students at the COSAFA Coaches Instructor Course that was staged in March 2020.

It is a sign that the development pipeline of COSAFA is producing talented individuals who can help to raise the level of competition in the future.

“The function of the TSG is to analyse all the teams at the tournament, their strengths, weaknesses, tactical formations and so on,” says CAF/COSAFA Instructor Fran Hilton-Smith.

“We then write a report and send it to the Member Associations, so they can grow and develop more. We advise teams on their strengths and where they can improve, including with their preparations for the tournament.”

The TSG are also involved in selecting the Player of the Match for each game, as well as the top 11 players and substitutes for a Team of the Tournament. They also choose the Player of the Tournament and Golden Glove winner among the goalkeepers.

Here is a run-down of all the off-pitch activities that have been centred around the 2021 COSAFA Women’s Championship.

 

Participants on the CAF General Coordinators Course

Participants on the CAF General Coordinators Course

CAF COURSE FOR GENERAL COORDINATORS
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) hosted a three-day course for General Coordinators under the leadership of their Deputy Director of Competitions, Khaled Nassar.
The course was attended in Nelson Mandela Bay by GCs from nine different countries, including outside of the COSAFA zone as there were participants from Egypt, Gabon and Tanzania.

 

D-LICENCE COACHING COURSE
The course was held for local aspiring coaches to set them on the path to a career in the game with a D-Licence and has become a fixture at COSAFA events.
The grassroots coaches got put through their paces over a week in Coega Village and even received a visit from SAFA President Dr Danny Jordaan.
Once coaches have obtained their D-Licence, they can start moving up the coaching ladder, so it is a crucial stage in their development.

 

ADMINISTRATION COURSE
Renowned FIFA Instructor Ashford Mamelodi ran a course for budding administrators in the Eastern Cape that took them through the finer points of running clubs, associations and tournaments.  

 

GIRLS UNDER-15 LEGACY TOURNAMENT
Local Girls’ Under-15 teams from around the region contested a tournament that was played over two days just ahead of the start of the COSAFA Women’s Championship.
It has become a welcome tradition to play competitions in this age-group at COSAFA women’s events, giving youngsters the chance to showcase their potential.

 

COSAFA HAND-OVER
Through COSAFA’s #PayItForward initiative, the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, in partnership with COSAFA and Spar, handed over 220 sanitary bags of towels to 11 beneficiaries, in an effort to restore dignity to young girls in the area.
The hand-over will ensure that hundreds of girls from local children’s homes and community safety initiatives will have a year’s supply of sanitary towels.