Molapo Sports Centre: March 2016

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Lesotho 2-1 Seychelles

2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying

Tuesday, 29 March

Maseru, Lesotho

Setsoto Stadium

Result

Lesotho 2-1 Seychelles

2016 African Mountain Bike Championships ready for launch

AfriSki 2016

The 2016 African Mountain Bike (MTB) Championships start tomorrow at the Afriski Mountain Resort in Butha-Buthe.

The MTB championships will run from tomorrow until Sunday.

The African MTB Championships carry Olympic qualifying points and several African countries that are yet to qualify for Rio 2016 will compete. It is the first time Lesotho will host the continental event which was held in Rwanda last year.

The venue for competition will be at Mahlasela Pass. The African MTB Championships cover different events under the two main MTB disciplines – cross-country and downhill.

The events scheduled for the championships are the Cross-country Marathon (XCM), Cross-country Team Relay (XCR), Olympic Cross-Country format (XCO), Cross-country Eliminator (XCE), Downhill (DHI) and Enduro.

Lesotho is yet to qualify for the Olympics. However, the country still has an outside chance to make it to Rio since it is ranked second in Africa and 41st in the world International Cycling Union (UCI).

Afriski Mountain Resort is situated above 3000 metres. It is renowned for snow sports in winter, with mountain biking and other adventure sports taking place the rest of the year.

The African MTB Championships are coming to Lesotho

2016 African Mountain Bike (MTB) Championships

Event Programme

Wednesday, 30th March:

15:00 – Official Opening Ceremony

16:00 – XCR International Team Relay

Thursday, 31st March:

09:00 – XCM – 60km Marathon (Men/ Women)

14:00 – END – Enduro

Friday, 1st April:

10:00 – XCO – Youth and Young age

14:00 – XCO – Veteran and senior age categories

Saturday, 2nd April:

10:00 – XCO – Woman Elite, U23 and Junior

14:00 – XCO – Men Elite, U23 and Junior

Sunday, 3rd April:

09:00 – Downhill – Official Seeding

11:00 – Downhill – Final Run

13:00 – Closing Ceremony

Monday, March 28, 2016

Likuena out to regain pride

Likuena fell short against Seychelles on Saturday
Can they bounce back?

Lesotho will be out to regain pride to when it hosts Seychelles in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier at Setsoto Stadium tomorrow afternoon.

Likuena’s chances of qualifying from Group J are all but over after three losses from their opening three games.

Lesotho, yet to register a point, trails Seychelles (4 points), Ethiopia (4) and Algeria (9).

The team’s latest loss was a 2-0 defeat away to Seychelles last Saturday at the Stade Linite.

It was another setback in what hasn’t been a happy campaign for Lesotho. Although Likuena have had good moments, the campaign has been characterised by missed chances.

Likuena led at halftime away to Ethiopia in the first group game before losing 2-1. They played excellently against Algeria last September and the game was tied 1-1 heading into the final ten minutes. But, Algeria managed a 3-1 win at Setsoto in the end.

And, last Saturday, Lesotho had opportunities to at least get a point from Seychelles.

Likuena were downed by goals from Gervais Waye-Hive and Dine Suzette but the score-line may have been different. Tumelo Khutlang had a close range header saved in the 10th minute. Khutlang also had two more chances, one in the 38th minute and another in the 64th, but Lesotho wasn’t able to take advantage of the possession it had.

Moses Maliehe’s team was also caught with two sucker-punch goals.

Firstly, Seychelles struck off a defensive error in the second minute of the game. Their second goal, in the 78th minute, came from a counter-attack while Likuena were pressing for a goal.

Likuena will be out to at least get some points on the board tomorrow. The match is the team’s best chance to get off the mark in the group. Lesotho hosts Ethiopia in June and travels to Algeria in September for the final two games of its 2017 AFCON qualifying campaign.

Maliehe lamented his team’s missed chances after Saturday loss. “We had many chances but, unfortunately, we failed to convert. This is football. We also faced a good team though we knew what to expect, but the early goal made things difficult for us,” Maliehe said.

Likuena skipper Basia Makepe said he was looking forward to turning things around when the teams meet tomorrow.

“It was a good match and we created lots of chances but luck was not on our side. Also, the early goal affected us. Now, we must aim for victory at home to prove a point as well as win by a wider margin,” Makepe said.

Lesotho-Seychelles will be played at Setsoto. Kick-off is at 15:00.

Lesotho’s remaining Group J games

29/03/16 – Lesotho v Seychelles

05/06/16 – Lesotho v Ethiopia

02/09/16 – Algeria v Lesotho

Group J standings

		P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts.
1	Algeria	3	3	0	0	14	2	12	9
2	Seychelles	3	1	1	1	3	5	-2	4
3	Ethiopia	3	1	1	1	4	9	-5	4
4	Lesotho	3	0	0	3	2	7	-5	0

Suntele Inkululeko qualifies for 2016 Olympic Games

Inkululeko: Boxing success for Lesotho

The list of athletes that will represent Lesotho at the Rio Olympic Games in August has grown to four after the qualification of boxer Suntele Inkululeko.

Inkululeko joins marathon runners Tšepo Mathibelle and Motlokoa Nkhabutlane as well as sprinter Mosito Lehata as the members of Team Lesotho thus far.

Inkululeko won his place by qualifying from the AIBA African Olympic Qualification Event that was held in Yaoundé, Cameroon from March 11 to 19.

Inkululeko, who fights in the 56-kilogram bantamweight class, beat Uganda’s Atanas Mugerwa 2-1 in their qualification decider.

The Olympic Games are slated for August 5 to 21 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Saturday, March 26, 2016

Seychelles end Lesotho’s hopes

Basia Makepe and co. came up short in Seychelles

Lesotho’s hopes of qualifying for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) are virtually over after a 1-0 loss to Seychelles at the Stade Linite in Mahe this afternoon.

The loss leaves Lesotho rock bottom of Group J after three defeats from three matches.

The result is another disappointing one for Lesotho.

Likuena have not a won an international match in nine outings. The team’s last victory was a 1-0 win over Tanzania in the COSAFA Cup last May.

Today’s game was the first in charge for caretaker coach Moses Maliehe since he was appointed in November.

Maliehe started with a new-look line-up led by Basia Makepe but, Likuena were immediately on the back foot when Seychelles scored in the second minute of the game.

Seychelles were the better side in the first half and controlled the game. They forced Lesotho to defend deep and Lesotho’s attacking players, Tumelo Khutlang, Tšotleho Jane and Thabiso Brown, were not much of a factor in the opening 45 minutes.

Likuena improved in the second half and created more chances.

But, in going forward, Likuena left themselves exposed at the back and Seychelles sealed the game with a counterattack goal in the 85th minute.

Likuena will return home tomorrow. The teams meet again in another Group J qualifier on Tuesday at Setsoto Stadium. The game kicks off at 15:00, but Lesotho will be playing for pride.

#Likuena starting XI:

1. Daniel Jousse

2. Bokang Sello

3. Sepiriti Malefane

5. Kopano Tseka

6. Jerry Kamela

7. Hlompho Kalake

8. Tšotleho Jane

9. Tumelo Khutlang

10. Jane ThabaNtšo

11. Thabiso Brown