Host nation Zambia are hoping that a good performance against Namibia will secure their boy's team a spot at the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) later this year. While both of South Africa's youth teams are off to a flying start in the YOG qualifier, Zambia in the boy's competition and Namibia in the girls' competition are also on the verge of qualification.
The tournament is being held at the Olympic Youth Development Centre in Lusaka, where five nations are playing for the the right to compete at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games in August. Only the top two teams in each competition will qualify to compete in China.
In the opening matches, South Africa girls beat Zimbabwe 14-0, while the South Africa boy's team faced a stiffer test against Namibia, emerging 7-4 winners.
In the other matches, Namibia beat Kenya 15-0 in the girl's competition, while Zambia boys went a step closer to securing qualification with a 6-1 victory over Zimbabwe. The host nation now need to beat Namibia to claim the second place in the boy's qualifiers.
Five teams are competing at the qualifying tournament after Nigeria pulled out. For tournament host nation Zambia – working under coach Nadeem Ahmed – qualification would be a huge step along the road to serious contention on the international hockey stage. Clare Digby, development chair of the African Hockey Federation (AfHF), said the Youth Olympic Games qualifier will be a milestone in the promotion of hockey in Zambia, while Tayyab Ikram, an International Hockey Federation (FIH) development expert, added that the nation "is full of talent".
"If they can focus on both the development and high performance side of the game they can be a serious contender among the African nations," he said.
"The upcoming YOG qualifier will raise the profile of OYDC and will serve as a great incentive for the youth development programme."
