Johannesburg — So much for being one of the most needy teams in the Sasol League last season, Copperbelt embodied the “Live The Impossible” slogan of the league.
The Limpopo team were crowned the Sasol League National Championship winners on home soil after beating the University of Pretoria 3-2 on penalties.
The two teams played out a tightly contested final at the New Peter Mokaba Stadium on Sunday as the game ended 1-1.
But the hosts went on to pocket a cheque of R200 000, while their qualification for the final meant they were promoted to the Hollywoodbets Super League.
Copperbelts striker Nomphelo Yakuphi bagging the Player and Top Goal Scorer of the Tournament awards in Polokwane.
For Tuks, though, not all was lost as they bagged silver medals and a cheque of R100 000, having also qualified for the Super League next season.
Tuks’ qualification is a huge win for women’s football, considering they will be the third PSL team in the league after Mamelodi Sundowns and Royal AM.
Promotion to the Super League has done wonders for a lot of teams and players, given that it’s the feeder league of Banyana Banyana.
And that’s why teams such as Copperbelt should be proud of their exploits, given the fact that they come from disadvantaged villages and situations.
Based in Moletjie Kanana Village, a small town in Limpopo, Copperbelts were established in 2019, while their biggest coup was coach Karabo Selabe.
Selabe is a former professional player, having played for ABC Motsepe league side Magesi, before hanging up his boots in 2016 due to niggling injuries.
He endured a lot of shortcomings with his relatively young team, trained on gravel pitches while they lacked basics such as balls and boots.
But even in the midst of all those difficulties, the Caf D coaching license holder didn’t despair, winning the provincial Sasol League in 2021.
That feat meant they earned qualification to the delayed National Championship playoffs in Durban, where they failed to make it through to the final.
But, again, their resilience paid off as they won the provincial league this year, before having the honour of hosting last week’s nationals.
Backed by supporters who cheered them on to two come-from-behind wins in the group stage, Copperbelt reached the semi-finals on Friday.
They beat NWU Tawana 2-1 in the semis to earn a spot in the Super League, which is expected to improve the lives of their players.
Going into the final, Copperbelt were underdogs against the privileged Tuks team. So much so that the university outfit led through Sinamile Mkhwanazi.
But an own goal from Tuks captain Betty Mallela levelled the scoreline, before the hosts came out as 3-2 victors on penalties to send the New Peter Mokaba Stadium into a frenzy.
IOL Sport