#NedbankCup more than a trophy for local communities

Maritzburg United chairman Farook Kadodia (right) already has plans of how he can spend a portion of the teams winning to better club. Photo: Ryan Wilkisky/BackpagePix

Maritzburg United chairman Farook Kadodia (right) already has plans of how he can spend a portion of the teams winning to better club. Photo: Ryan Wilkisky/BackpagePix

Published May 19, 2018

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SuperSport United player Aubrey Modiba and Farook Kadodia, chairmain of Maritzburg United share something in common – they both want to use their success from Nedbank Football Initiatives to build “courts’’ for their respective institutions.

Maritzburg could be in-line to be the next football fraternity to be shaped by one of South Africa’s corporate banks if they win the Nedbank Cup against Free State Stars tonight (kick-off at 7pm) at Cape Town Stadium. 

This will be the club’s maiden cup final since its inception 30 years ago. Kadodia says that bagging the R7 million pay-cheque will go a long way in renovating their home-ground Harry Gwala Stadium that only has a roof covering the grandstand.

“That would be my number one priority (to fully revamp the Stadium),” Kadodia told my colleague Lungani Zama who’s based in Durban, as they toured the Stadium. “If we could finish this stadium, we could have a capacity of around 18000 here, and that would make a huge difference. Investing in a place with a proper stadium is far more appealing to potential partners.

“The stadium was built as a warm-up or training venue for the 2010 World Cup, but it was never fully done. The money for that project conveniently ran out, and the stamina to pursue the trail fizzled out with the end of the World Cup.’’

Modiba’s graduation from the Nedbank Ke Yona Team Search has already proven to be a success story both on and off the pitch. In the 2016/2017 season - his first with SuperSport - the 22-year-old has been an instrumental figure in the triumphs of the Nedbank Cup and securing a spot in the finals of the Caf Confederations Cup.

This season, he won the MTN-8 trophy and played an integral part in saving the club from relegation. Off the field, he’s recently gave back to his former school Makgefola Primary in Polokwane a Multipurpose sports court worth R1.2 million courtesy of Nedbank and the Sports Trust. The Matshelapata-born winger believes that this will help local children reach their dreams like he did.

“Giving back with a Multipurpose court means the world to me, he said. “I’ve got no words, hence, I am grateful to Nedbank and the Sports Trust. I just hope that they continue doing initiatives like this especially for people who hail from rural areas because no one knew my home-town until the unveiling of the court.

“The court will help the children a lot. It does not only cater for soccer but also other activities. I am happy that Nedbank didn’t focus on me being in their soccer industry but they made the court to be accessible to different kinds of sports.’’

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