The women’s development team of the University of Johannesburg (UJ) cruised through five victories to win the 2022 Gauteng Engen Knockout Challenge on Sunday, 3 July 2022 at Marks Park in Johannesburg. The UJ Under20 women’s team played and won all five games against Wits Ladies, JVW Ladies, Panorama FC, and Rosina Sedibane, netting two crucial goals against JVW Ladies Under20 to be crowned champions.

Both UJ women’s Under20 and men’s Under18 teams participated in the competition, which took place from 1 to 3 July.

“My overall feeling is that this was unexpected, it was amazing to see the girls play so well from start to finish. They played with every strength they had to win this tournament. Winning all the games in the competition was essentially living the famous UJ slogan “#UJAllTheWay” – the girls showed character.

“To be a champion in Gauteng and going up to win against other champions from other provinces is also a big thing. Personally, this is one of the things I will remember in my coaching career,” said Nthabeleng Modiko, Assistant Coach: UJ Women’s Football Team.

Thubelihle Shamase, a twin sister to Siphumelele Shamase, walked away with three awards for Top Goal Scorer, Player of the Tournament and Striker of the Tournament. Shamase said that she enjoyed playing in the tournament. The victories of the team came, she says, as a result of the unity of the players in the team.

While the ladies team enjoyed dominance in the tournament, the young UJ men’s team struggled to find their foot in the tournament. They lost to to Wits Men, Supersport United and played a draw against Black Aces.

Coach Modiko hopes to have her full squad back in the coming games due to injuries suffered during the tournament.