The Junior Africa Cup in hockey, where Africa’s best junior hockey teams were showcased, took place in Windhoek, Namibia, from 8 to 25 April 2025. The South African men’s and women’s teams not only became African champions, but also qualified for the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Hockey World Cup, later this year. Twelve of the players were Maties students, studying at Stellenbosch University (SU).
Jenna Blaauw, a third-year BA (Law) student, has been part of the Maties team since 2023. She describes being part of the tournament as “an awesome privilege“, since it was the first African Cup she played. “It was really cool to be able to represent the green and gold, playing for something so much bigger than yourself,“ she said.
Blaauw shared some unexpected challenges, “unfortunately, at the Africa Cup, you play against some people who don’t have the same opportunities as we do. We came there as a very privileged side. So the toughest part of the tournament was playing against teams who are unstructured and don’t really have tactics — that tested us.“ For her, “the toughest game was probably going into the finals against Namibia. It is always hard when you have played a team, beaten them — in this case, just the day before — and then you are going into a second match. Especially since it was the final.“
The most difficult match, for the victorious South African men’s team, was played against Kenya. Dan Neuhof, a third-year BCom (International Business) student who plays middle centre, describes that the attitude posed a greater challenge than the skill. “Kenya wasn’t the strongest opponent we faced, but at that point, we’d already qualified for the final of the tournament, so it was difficult to get into the right mindset for the game.” Despite the mental challenge, the men’s team remained undefeated, a testament to their strength and resilience.
Maties players were instrumental to the success of their teams, and some players took home individual awards. Daniel Dillon, third-year BEng student, was awarded the Men’s Goalkeeper of the Tournament. Scharlize Crafford, who is the Maties Hockey Coordinator, was also selected to represent South Africa as a technical official.
Caylin Marree, who is completing her fourth-year as BEd Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE), was recognized as Top Goal Scorer of the Tournament. She described the tournament as special, recognising the value in working together despite differences. Marree says, “having all these diverse personalities and cultures coming together and buying into one common goal was very special.”
The last three places in the men’s and women’s competitions will be allowed to compete in the upcoming FIH Junior Hockey World Cups 2025. So some Maties will be travelling to India (men) and Chile (women) at the end of the year. Blaauw has already taken part in this tournament back in 2023 and mentions how there is a vast difference between international
hockey on that stage — as compared with the Africa Cup, due to the competition.
“When we go there, we are seen as the less fortunate since in South Africa, hockey isn’t seen as a professional sport. Then you go and play against the Dutch or Australians — they get sponsored and paid to play. They have a lot more opportunity to better themselves because it’s people’s first priority. Whereas here we need to study and get a degree to be able to fund ourselves.” She adds that “it is a stepping stone and hopefully, one day, the following South African generations will be able to play at that level and be recognized as professional athletes.”
We can be incredibly proud of the South African teams, especially our own Maties players. They balance full-time academics with professional hockey. With the World Cup a few months away, know that Stellenbosch University is rooting for you! These players deserve all the recognition and credit owed to them, especially since winning an international tournament.
By Lilja Flohr and Abigail Powell
