BDF IX target Extravaganza title
Calistus Kolantsho | Friday July 18, 2025 10:41
The tournament is the pinnacle for local softball players due to its incentives. All the way from Sir Seretse Khama Barracks, BDF IX teams are fired up and targeting a double from the competition. The men’s coach, Tebogo Makacana has the experience to win the extravaganza, something that he has done before with his previous team, Police IX. He told MmegiSport that the journey started from the South region eliminations where his charges displayed brilliance, good offence, and scored a lot of runs. Makacana said he is all fired up because he has not won the tournament in two years, which feels like forever and it is now time to be on the podium.
“Our defence was not quite on point and that led to us giving away easy runs to our opponents, something which we rectified. We only took a short break after the league championship for recovery and then got back to training, preparing for Extravaganza tournament qualifiers. The boys have been working really hard,” he said. Makacana said one player has left BDF IX during the current transfer window, and one replacement has been added to balance the team. He said Phikwe Softball Extravaganza is the biggest tournament in the country and everyone wants to put their hands on the trophy but BDF IX is going there to win it. BDF IX women’s team captain, Ethel Mongwewarona said they are going to Phikwe to defend the title they have been winning since 2023. She said over the years, there has been a lot of player development. “My players have grown and have bonded as a team. We have had sessions to work on players' mental strength because sometimes a player can feel overwhelmed when they are not mentally sharp. Extravaganza is a big stage, with a lot of attendance and this time around we expect more people due to the Makgadikgadi Epic cancellation,” she said.
Mongwewarona said they expect an interesting battle if they meet Police in the final, adding that they lost to the same opponent during the eliminations due to a mistake which they have worked on. Meanwhile, Police women's captain, Tunah Passman, said she has played the tournament since 2009, only to miss out in 2011 when institutional teams were excluded from the tournament. In 2023, Police IX were surprise absentees when the club treasurer missed the payment deadline for registration of the eliminations. Passman said they want to redeem themselves because they did not play according to plan in the last edition, finishing in position three. She said each club wants the cup but to Police IX, it is all about bringing back the status. “There are a lot of players who we have seen growing at this tournament. When it started, Gatalamotho and some other teams had youngsters who displayed good softball for their age. Same thing about Dinare, they had youngsters who went on to win the tournament twice during that time,” she said.