12 Feb 2018

Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Slumber Tsogwane has urged Orapa United to maintain their good performance record. Minister Tsogwane said this in Orapa when handing over a training kit and footballs he donated to the team on Saturday.

The Ostriches, who have qualified for the Mascom Top 8 final, were advised against allowing external forces to split them by poaching players.

The team, he said, has brought a smile on the community of Orapa as well as the whole of Boteti. Minister Tsogwane added that the team has put Boteti on the map, and urged them to continue with the outstanding performance.

Orapa United, he said, was the destination team for some players and that their players were envied by other players.

He urged them to bear in mind that they were needed by the people of Boteti.

Minister Tsogwane also said the Ostriches were not only representing Boteti, but Botswana as a whole.

He said they should not be derailed when their team loses, but should rather derive strength from their weaknesses.

He commended Daniel “Chico” Nare for offering his coaching skills to the team when he was needed most, saying they were proud of his appointment.

The deputy chairperson of the team, Kennekae Nkape said the minister’s visit was timely in the sense that the team has qualified  for the Mascom Top 8 final, and that he would give them the motivation and courage to snatch the trophy.

Nkape was adamant that the team would return to the mining town with the trophy.

He added that Orapa United belonged to the community of Boteti, emphasising that it was not owned by Debswana.

Debswana, he said, was only there to offer support to a community project, adding that the team was dependent on the mine. Nkape said they believed its success was due to support from the leadership.
Councillor Koketso Seloi of Orapa reiterated that the Ostriches would be going to Francistown on March 3 on a mission to get the Mascom Top 8 trophy. Ends