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Leseding 30 October
Leseding News
SPORT
Platinum Stars coach explains club’s objectives Farirayi Kahwemba
farirai@lesedingnews.co.za Platinum Stars coach, Allan Freese is clear about the objectives of the club, who have so far won the MTN8 Cup by beating Orlando Pirates in the final.
Asked whether Platinum Stars (the only team from the North West playing the Premier League) have the ability to continue dominating big clubs such as Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, Freese responded, “For us, it is not about dominating other clubs. We are just out to play our normal game and this has been effective for us so far.” “The desire is to win more silverware, and hopefully this will happen as long as the players continue working hard for the team and for each other,” he added. Domination is a word that has been associated with the manner in which clubs from Soweto,
2014 athletics season preparations begin With the curtain having already come down on this year’s athletics season, Athletics North West
SERIOUS: Coach Allan Freese plans to win more matches. (PHOTO: SUPPLIED) particularly Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, have managed to steal the limelight from the rest of the teams in the Premier League in recent times. In fact, the last time that a club from outside Johannesburg won the Premier League title was in the 2009/10 season, when SuperSport, a club from Pretoria, lifted the title. Platinum Stars finished a lowly 14th position that year, while Chiefs (3rd) and Pirates (5th) also found themselves being dominated. SuperSport’s victory in the 2009/10 season was their third consecutive win under coach Gavin Hunt, who is now the coach of Bidvest Wits. Since then, the League title has been won by Pirates (on two occasions) and Kaizer Chiefs, ensuring that South African football’s most prized piece of silverware remained the “property” of Johannesburg-based clubs. But the tide seems to be changing. North (ANWN) is in the process of finalising their events calendar for 2014. During the SA Sub-Youth, Youth, and Junior Championships this year, ANWN did not win as many medals as they were aiming for and will be out to rectify the mediocre performance of their athletes during the 2014 season. “During the championships, we got four gold medals in the steeplechase, 400m hurdles, 400m sprint and 100m sprint,” ANWN administrator Aubrey Moitlobo said in an interview with Leseding News. “This time we will be aiming to win more medals. Last year we had a team of around 60 athletes, so
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Platinum Stars’ victory in the MTN8 Cup, apart from uniting the city of Rustenburg, has sent a very strong statement to the rest of the football community. A statement that this season, the Rustenburgbased club intends to seriously challenge for top honours. And the club’s 2-1 win over Mamelodi Sundowns on 19 October, in the Telkom Knockout at Moruleng Stadium, went a long way to prove they have the ability to defeat the big teams on a regular basis. Officials from the club say winning the League title this season is the main objective. “After having finished second in last season’s League title chase, we are aiming to go all the way this season,” Platinum Stars Media and Supporters’ Head, Aubrey Molobi said. “This is the main objective. If a club finishes second
in a season, the only logical ambition is to aim for a better position, and the better position in this case is first position.” During last season, attracting a large number of supporters at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace, Platinum Stars’ home ground, was one of the major challenges faced by the club during their competitive matches. However, Molobi said the club has since come up with what they hope will be an effective solution to this challenge. “Yes, support was our major concern last season as a club. During our meetings as a club, we have resolved to take our matches to as many people as possible. “Some of our matches will be played at Moruleng Stadium. The club belongs to the province as a whole and the people from the province must now begin to take ownership of their club,” Molobi said.
maybe we will have more this year,” he added. ANWN’s season for 2014, according to the association’s draft calendar, is expected to begin during the third week of January. Moitlobo urged clubs from the province and any athletes interested in taking part in athletics events to contact him on 014 594 2895 or 076 295 8625. For the track events, athletes will compete in seven distances: 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1 500m, 5 000m and 10 000m. The field events comprise of the high jump, long jump, shot put, discus, and pole vault, among others. “We welcome every member of the community
interested in taking part in our athletics events. The events are open to everyone. “Our goal is to ensure that athletics events become more popular among the people of the North West, and this can be achieved through increased participation this year.” “We are yet to confirm the actual dates, but we will be hosting events at Olympia Park because the venue is more central to our athletes and clubs,” he explained. “From 7-8 March, we will host the provincial championships, where we will select a team that will represent North West in the Sub-Youth, Youth, and Junior Championships.”
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