The under-15 team from South Africa lost their playoff matches 1-0 to

Chonburi from Japan and 7-6 on penalties to MTK Hungaria from Hungary.

Although the team did not reach the quarterfinal stage, they were the talk

of the tournament because of their superb individual skill, spirited singing

and friendly approach.

On Wednesday, eight of the Kaizer Chiefs players were selected to take part

in a low-intensity skills session with Manchester United players Paul

Scholes, Quinton Fortune and Phil Neville. The goalkeepers, midfield

players, defenders and strikers were split into different groups and put

through their paces by some of Europe’s finest players.

And on Thursday the team visited Old Trafford one last time to watch the

Manchester United Premier Cup final between Manchester City and Manchester

United, followed by the final games of the Vodafone Cup, which were

eventually rained out due to lightening and thunderous rain. The players

then attended the tournament’s closing ceremony at Manchester University’s

training grounds, where jerseys and contact details were swapped late into

the night.

With South Africa winning the 2010 World Cup bid, no doubt many of the

players that took part at this year’s Manchester United Premier Cup will be

representing their countries in six years time.