Bosija's safe gloves propel Mares
Koketso Kgoboge | Friday November 27, 2020 13:47
PALAPYE: The only Botswana woman product to ply her professional trade in the South African league, Sedilame Bosija proved her mettle as she led the Mares to a COSAFA silver medal.
As if that was not enough, she was also chosen as the goalkeeper of the tournament.
Tsontso, as the shot stopper is affectionately known, won two Player of the Match Awards in the three games she played before being named overall best goalkeeper.
Tsontso plies her club football at Bloemfontein Celtics in the Sasol National League. She joined the club in 2017 from Double Action. She played two months at Double Action before a dream switch. This was after spending four years with Township Rollers.
The 22-year-old, who hails from the northeast village of Tutume, impressed the Celtic scouts in 2016 while on national duty for a friendly against Lesotho in Maseru. The following year, the South African club captured her signature.
Despite the COVID-19 setbacks, she said the recently concluded COSAFA spectacle would go down memory as her best tournament despite falling short in the final.
“We did our best and we came very close. From being knocked out of the group stage in the last COSAFA tournament to finishing in the finals in the next tournament shows a great improvement all round. I believe we can do it next time,” she said. Tsontso’s personal achievements have been growing since she moved abroad so much she cannot take count of her medals. Her football started at Monarch Primary School in Francistown when she was in Standard 5.
Her teacher, whom she remembers as one Mr. Dichaba introduced her to football. She banged in goals as a striker before transforming to becoming a goalkeeper.
“In-field involved a lot of running and I was a bit lazy, hence I chose to go into the goals,” she explained.
Her choice proved worthwhile. She was immediately drafted into the national Under-13 team that travelled to Windhoek, Namibia for a junior tournament against Namibia and Lesotho. That sparked more interest in the game and she never looked back.
While in Standard 7, she received a national Under-17 call-up and before the end of 2011, she donned the Under-20 national team jersey.
She moved to Gaborone for her secondary school for an opportunity to also advance her football career where a competitive league was played. She schooled at Gaborone West Junior Secondary School. Tsontso joined Township Rollers, her first local team while a Form 2 student in 2013.
She broke into the first team a year later. She impressed and soon she became the senior national team first choice.
Four years later, she became the first Motswana woman to play professional football in South Africa’s Sasol League. She was first choice on arrival at Bloemfotein Celtics in 2017.
She helped the club to two league triumphs, in her first and second seasons. In the third season, Celtic finished on position three before the coronavirus struck.
She believes she has gained enough experience at Bloemfotein to advance even further. For her, the sky is the limit and has set sights on an overseas move.
“I gained a lot of playing minutes at Bloemfontein. The league had been hectic and it helped me a lot to improve my game. I believe I am ready to advance further. I dream of a move to clubs like Arsenal,” she said.
In a journey that kicked off nearly a decade ago, she has lost count of medals she has won, but estimates they are over 100. She remembers 10 Player of the Match awards for the national team.
“I worked hard and I try to do my best all the time. I have encouraged my teammates to do the same and together we can achieve our goals. We have players that can compete abroad,” she said.
Tsontso, who has many other nicknames, said playing football had not been an easy choice as a girl-child but she persevered. She reckoned from her experience girls needed a lot of encouragement and support from, particularly, parents.
“We also need to focus, dream and belief in ourselves. Like many people say, I also believe women teams can reach greater heights quickly with more investment on helping women develop in the game,” she said.
FACT FILE
Names: Sedilame ‘Tsontso’ Bosija
Birthdate: December 1, 1997
Birthplace: Kanye
Home Village: Tutume
Sport: Football
CAPS: Under-13, Under-17, Under-20 and senior team
Favourite Local Player: Refilwe Tholakele
Favourite International Player: Christiano Ronaldo
Favourite Meal: Pasta and wings