Successive hat-tricks for girl with golden boot

PORT Elizabeth soccer ace Andisile Kolisi flew the region’s flag high when she scored successive hat-tricks as the Eastern Cape women’s soccer team won their first two games in Germany.

The Eastern Cape side, on a tour of German state Lower Saxony, made their presence felt when they demolished TSV Eintracht Immenbeck 7-5 in their opening match of the tour.

Kolisi scored three goals against Immenbeck, while teammates Amanda November also registered a hat-trick and Bukelwa Fuzile netted the remaining goal.

Kolisi again netted three goals in their second clash against Wolfsburg and fellow-striker November added one more in the 4-3 result.

The provincial team is visiting Germany as part of the agreement of understanding signed by the Eastern Cape Department of Sport with the federal state of Lower Saxony in 2005.

Both the Eastern Cape and Lower Saxony have hosted several sporting events such as amateur boxing, hockey, handball, rugby and athletics since the inception of the partnership. The soccer team is mainly composed of players participating in the club development programme and the Sasol Women’s League from the eight regions.

The Nelson Mandela Bay region is represented by New Brighton-based City Lads players Kolisi, Phakama Duru and Nosiphiwo Bottoman, as well as Jessi Haitley from Mustang Ladies.

Lads’ owner Nomalungelo Mooi described Kolisi, 21, as a deadly striker. “I’m not surprised when I heard she scored six goals in two games because my girl can rise above all things when she drives a ball with her golden feet,” he said.

“I’m proud of her and I don’t doubt that she will be part of the national team. She was once called into the set-up of the junior and the senior national teams but she was never called again.” Mooi said newly appointed Banyana Banyana coach Vera Pauw would visit the region soon to assess players for the national team.

“We will call everybody who was part of the squad and I’m sure Kolisi is one of the players who deserve to be in that national squad,” he said.

German side Immenbeck visited the province last year and played against selected regional soccer teams. - Mthetho Ndoni