AFCON Under-20 winning coach Raymond Mdaka is taking on a new challenge, joining the board of the Limpopo Academy of Sport [LAS].
Mdaka led South Africa to their maiden U-20 Africa Cup of Nations title with a 1-0 victory over Morocco in Cairo last month.
The CAF A Licence holder has also qualified the junior national team for the U-20 World Cup, which will take place in Chile in September. Before the tournament in Egypt, South Africa had not qualified for the U-20 AFCON since 2019.
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Mdaka’s recent success doesn’t come as a fluke. He led Betway Premiership side Marumo Gallants to the semi-finals of the CAF Confederation Cup in 2023. They were eliminated by Young Africans, who were coached by now-Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi.
The 60-year-old was voted Coca-Cola Championship Coach of the Tournament after winning the tournament with the SAFA Limpopo Under-17. He also served as the SAFA provincial technical officer between 2017 and 2019. He took the now-defunct Dynamos to the quarter-finals of the ABSA Cup in 2016 while serving as interim coach.
He also coached the team to a COSAFA Under-20 Championship victory in Mozambique, where they beat Zambia 2-0. Mdaka’s troops won the regional tournament without conceding a single goal.
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On Monday, 9 June, Mdaka was inaugurated as part of the newly-appointed board members of LAS by Limpopo MEC for Sport, Arts and Culture Jerry Maseko. Part of their primary mandate is to identify, develop and retain talented athletes in Limpopo.
Meanwhile, Greater Tzaneen Municipality Mayor Gerson Molapisane is set to officially honour Mdaka on Thursday. Mdaka was born in an area called Mokgwati within the Greater Tzaneen. He received a special invite to the State of the Municipal Address [SOMA] to be delivered by Molapisane.
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