The South African U-20 men’s team achieved the improbable as they won the country’s first ever African Youth Championship title in Egypt on Sunday night.
En route to the crown, Amajita beat Morocco 1-0 in the final at 30 June Stadium in Cairo courtesy of Gomolemo Kekana’ scorcher.
Coach Raymond Mdaka opened up during his post-match press conference that it was a team effort that enabled them to surpass the class of 1997 which only finished as runners-up.
But there were individuals that ensured Amajita climbed to the top of the continental rankings, and that’s why we look at three of them below.
Tylon Smith – Defender
Smith duly walked away with the Player of the Tournament award, thanks to a host of Player of the Match performances throughout the tournament.
Smith didn’t only marshall Amajita’s defence against the run of play or out of possession, but he was creative in build-up play, linking defence with midfielders.
The towering defender put his height into good use during setpieces, chipping in with crucial goals, including the lone header during the win over Nigeria in the semi-final.
Fletcher Smythe-Lowe – Goalkeeper
After making crucial saves and assisting Kekana’s goal in the final, there were also a range of expectations for Smythe-Lowe to scoop the Player of the Tournament award.
But it wasn’t to be as he lost out to teammate Smith. Nevertheless, he showed his goalkeeping prowess, and is tipped to follow in the footsteps of some of the country’s greats.
Smythe-Lowe, en route to four clean sheets in the tournament, pulled off some incredible saves and was able to organise his defence against set-pieces.
Shakeel April – Winger
Having arrived in Egypt with some few minutes under his belt for the Cape Town City first team, that showed in April’s game against his peers.
The winger wasn’t only a thorn in the flesh for the opposition’s defence, but his decision-making was spot on, especially when he was in possession.
Sure, he didn’t score as many goals as he’d have liked to, but his attacking prowess opened up space for the rest of his teammates up front.
