Kick4Life hosts first-ever Lesotho Easter Youth Tournament

Youth football will take centre stage at the Bambatha Tšita Sports Arena
this weekend...

Kick4Life will host the first-ever Lesotho Easter Youth Tournament this weekend. The tournament will kick-off on Friday and end on Saturday. It will be hosted at the Bambatha Tšita Sports Arena and will feature guest teams from Botswana and South Africa.

The Lesotho Easter Youth Tournament will consist of Under-16 and Under-23 competitions.

The Under-16 category will be contested by eight teams, six of which are from Lesotho – Kick4Life Under-16, Kick4Life Academy, Matlama FC, LMPS FC, ACE Maseru FC and Roller Stars FC.

The two other sides are South Africa’s Kagiso Sports School of Excellence (KSSE) and Palapye All Stars from Botswana.

The Under-23 competition is made up of four clubs. Kick4Life will face KSSE in the semi-finals while the other match will see ACE Maseru take on Palapye All Stars.

Kick4Life’s Director of Football, Chris Bullock, said is the tournament, which is the first of its kind in Lesotho, is an opportunity for all the youngsters involved. KCCE, for example, is run by Thabiso Nkoana who plays for SuperSport United in South Africa’s top-flight Premier Soccer League.

“Our hope is to give exposure to our youth players and give them a chance to play against teams from across the region,” Bullock said. “But also there is the possibility to identify players who perhaps could get other opportunities in the future.”

Bullock said organisers also hope to make the Easter Youth Tournament a yearly fixture in the region’s youth football schedule.

“This is the first time the tournament is being held and we hope to make it an annual tournament but with the host team rotating across the Southern African region,” he said.

Lesotho Easter Youth Tournament Schedule:

Friday

Under 16

Quarterfinals:

QF 1: ACE Maseru v KSSE (09:00)

QF 2: Kick4Life v Matlama (11:00)

QF 3: Palapye All Stars v Kick4Life Academy (13:00)

QF 4: Roller Stars v LMPS (15:00)

Under 23

Semi-finals:

KSSE v Kick4Life (11:00)

ACE Maseru v Palapye All Stars (13:00)

Saturday

Under 16

Semi-finals:

Winner QF 1 v Winner QF 2 (09:00)

Winner QF 3 v Winner QF 4 (09:00)

Final at 15:00

Losers’ semi-finals and final:

Loser QF 1 v Loser QF 2 (11:00)

Loser QF 3 v Loser QF 4 (11:00)

Losers’ final (13:00)

Under 23

Finals:

3rd v 4th (13:00)

Final (13:00)