Talanta Hela U19 teams in Spain have cruised to the semifinals of the 2024 Costa Daurada Cup that is ongoing in Salou, Spain.
Girls Run
Talanta Hela U19 ladies’ football team picked up from where they left, seeing off Sporting de Portugal 3-2 in the closely contested match played at the Futbol Salou Sports Center.
The side was coming from a 4-0 victory over CE Jupiter in their opening pool match. Elizabeth Mideva struck twice, with Marion Musanga scoring a goal in the match.
They then won 4-0 against CD Olimpico in the final pool match. The impressive performance saw them proceed to the tournament’s semifinal.
Speaking after the match, the team’s coach Jackline Juma hailed her charges’ impressive performance so far, noting that they aimed to win the tournament.
“A win is a win. We thank God for the win. Lisbon is a very good team. You can tell by how they are playing. They got the experience. It was a tough match but all in all, we got the win. We will take one match at a time. When the game started there was stage fright but they get better each day,” she said.
Her sentiments were echoed by the team’s striker Marion Musanga who noted that playing against foreign teams was a dream come true for most of the ladies.
“The game was not easy, we played according to the instructions of our coach. We gave our best on the pitch and we achieved our main goal which was to win. This tournament is vital for our exposure to the scouts,” Musanga said.
Boys Run
The boys too did not disappoint. The Stanley Okumbi-coached side staged a last-minute comeback to defeat Usurbil FT 2-0 in the dying minutes of the opening half.
The boys’ scorer Derrick Oketch noted that every win was a step closer to their dream of being professional players. He was grateful for the Talanta Hela initiative for its role of identifying, nurturing and monetizing talents to ensure they got a decent livelihood.
“The game was good. There were no major difficulties. The opponents were very weak, we just missed opportunities to score. Our approach was great. We came to compete and look for exposure,” he started.
“We feel amazing. Winning this title is our ultimate goal and we will be the happiest if we achieve that. Scoring in a foreign land gives us motivation to keep going,” he continued.
“We are well prepared. The group stages prepared us well. Talanta Hela has helped us grow our talents and reach this far, even playing abroad. We thank God and the CS for this,” he concluded.
