The Eastern Cape has new champions in the Engen Knockout Challenge after eBhayi FC and Nav Galaxy FC were crowned the 2024 winners on Sunday at NMU.
The return of the tournament to the talent-rich Eastern Cape lived up the high expectations, with all 24 participating teams producing quality soccer at the two-day event.
The crowning of eBhayi FC in the boys’ section and Nav Galaxy FC in the girls’ division means the province will be represented by new teams at this year’s Engen Champ of Champs.
Pefa side eBhayi dethroned Chippa United in the boys’ section, while Nav Galaxy took the crown from former champions City Lads FC.
eBhayi FC were clinical en route to the final as they started with a 3-1 win over Sophia Young Stars in their opening match. They then defeated Maria Louw High 4-1 to finish top of their group.
The quarterfinals saw eBhayi cruising past Ndakeni Young Stars with a 3-0 win, before edging United Brothers 2-1 in a closely contested semifinal.
The newly crowned champions wrapped things up in style in the final with a 2-0 win over Chippa United to be crowned the top guns in the Eastern Cape.
Nav Galaxy had a tough start to their campaign when they had to dig deep for a 1-0 win over Golden Stars before a 2-0 win over Phoenix Birds Ladies FC in their second group match.
By the time they played Bay Stars Ladies, Galaxy had picked up momentum, resulting in a comfortable 3-0 win.
That sent them into the semifinals where they cruised past Kilimanjaro Stars with a comfortable 5-0 win.
Galaxy then faced the 2023 champions City Lads FC, who they impressively held to a 0-0 draw before being crowned champions after a dramatic 4-3 penalty shoot-out victory.
The Engen Knockout Challenge continues this weekend, with Durban set to host the KwaZulu-Natal leg on June 29-30.
The awards made at the conclusion of the tournament were:
Girls
Goalkeeper of the tournament: Unako Koyana (Nav Galaxy)
Defender of the tournament: Lucretia Smith (Golden Stars)
Midfielder of the tournament: Avuya Mpensheni (Nav Galaxy)
Striker of the tournament: Aphelele January (Kilimanjaro Stars)
Top goalscorer: Endinako Gqboka (Ayakha Stars)
Coach of the tournament: Asevela Nyeleka (Nav Galaxy)
Fair play team award: Bay Star Ladies
Player of the tournament: Avuya Mpensheni (Nav Galaxy)
Boys
Goalkeeper of the tournament: Ayanda Tembani (Sophia Young Stars)
Defender of the tournament: Cole Frost (eBhayi)
Midfielder of the tournament: Olwethu Songelwa (Sophia Young Stars)
Striker of the tournament: Liyahluma Mawaba (Sophia Young Stars)
Top goalscorer: Lee Rogan de Kock (eBhayi)
Coach of the tournament: Caleb van Rooyen (eBhayi)
Fair play team award: Nyathi
Player of the tournament: Lee Rogan de Kock (eBhayi)
Referee of the tournament: Christiano le Roux
HeraldLIVE
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