Seven UJ student-athletes selected for South Africa’s Under21 hockey squad

On Wednesday, 22 June 2022, the South African Hockey Association announced the first group of the SA Under21 men and women squad with seven University of Johannesburg (UJ) players selected for the 2023 FIH Junior World Cup in Malaysia and Chile. The student-athletes were selected from the U21 IPT that recently took place in Eastern Cape.

Jesquinique Coltman and Siyavuya Bakaco are part of the women’s team while Desmond Ayeh, Marvin Simons, Kenoe Christians, Kamva Dyakala and Tebogo Maseko are in the men ‘squad. They will go on camp in in July.

“It is always good to see players excel in their sport. This selection of our players is the reason why we invest in high performance sport – an accolade that shows the fruitful nature of our hockey programme. We are producing talent which is fit for our National and Global Reputation Management strategy,” says Anton van Rooyen, Manager: UJ Hockey Club.

Their selection comes days after SA Hockey announced on 20 June 2022that Guy Elliott is the new head coach for the U21 men’s team and Lenise Marais still at the helm of the U21 women’s team.

According to SA Hockey, this is the first group of players identified on the road to Malaysia and Chile, but there will be further selection and opportunities for other players over the course of the next 18 months.

South Africa hosted the FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup in April 2022, finishing in 7^th position.