2 Seychellois football clubs depart for CAF games, one to be played in front of 65,000
General |Author: Betymie Bonnelame | February 9, 2018, Friday @ 13:40| 2690 views
St. Louis will face Tanzanian sports club ‘Young Africans' in the 2018 Total African Champions League on Saturday. (Davis Khan, Facebook)
(Seychelles News Agency) - The two Seychellois football clubs participating in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) competitions left the country earlier this week for their away matches this weekend.
The St. Louis club -- winner of the national league and cup competition last year -- will be facing the Tanzanian sports club ‘Young Africans' in the 2018 Total African Champions League on Saturday at 5 p.m.
Speaking to SNA, the team’s manager Davis Khan said, “We went on a training camp in Praslin during the weekend and we played two games just to assess our strategy and how the players play as a team.”
Khan said that the coaching panel was satisfied with the team’s performances and “we are definitely ready for the competition."
St. Louis will be fielding the same team as last year under the leadership of newly recruited coach Michel Renaud.
The team based in the central district of St. Louis will be facing one of the biggest teams in Tanzanian football from the country’s largest city, Dar es Salaam, and manager Khan said the match will be a tough one.
“It will be a difficult match away and we have been told that we will be playing in front of a crowd of around 65,000. We will be taking the utmost care at the same time seeking at least a draw.”
The other Seychellois football club in the CAF competition is Anse Reunion after being runners-up in the Federation Cup final. The La Digue-based club will be facing APR (Armee Patriotique Rwandaise) -- the leading football team from Rwanda -- in the Confederation Cup on Sunday at 5.30 p.m.
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| Anse Reunion will be facing APR (Armee Patriotique Rwandaise) in the Confederation Cup on Sunday Photo License: CC-BY |
Coach Ted Esther said that for the past three weeks the training was more intensive and the players are ready for Friday.
“The players are looking forward to the match especially the young ones who will be playing their first international match.”
Esther said they expect the match to be a tough one but “we are hoping to get a good result and that we can improve when we play at home in two weeks.”
The return leg matches are scheduled for the weekend February 16-18 and the winners will progress to the second round in March.