Warriors trainer gets plaudits as SA lift Under-20 Afcon crown: 'So grateful to have Zim legend Pernell McKop'

vimbayi makwavarara
May 20
2 min read

BY SPORTSCAST WRITER

HARARE – The mother of South Africa Under-20 goalkeeper Fletcher Smythe-Lowe has celebrated the team’s Africa Cup of Nations triumph by honouring Zimbabwean goalkeepers’ coach Pernell McKop, her son’s early trainer.

Nicknamed Amajita, the South African youth side lifted the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations trophy after beating Morocco 1-0 in the final on Sunday in host country Egypt, to record the Southern African nation’s first continental youth title.

18-year-old Smythe-Lowe, who was groomed by Zimbabwe national team goalkeepers’ coach McKop since he started playing football, kept four clean sheets to be named Goalkeeper of the Tournament in Egypt.

Reacting to the feat on Sunday, Professor Dee Smythe reposted an October 2018 post of hers on X, which had a picture of McKop giving a pep-talk to her 11-year-old son at the training ground.

“Still so grateful to have Zim legend Pernell McKop in my (not so little anymore) goalkeeper’s life 🙏” she commented.

A professor of Public Law at the University of Cape Town, Smythe had wrote on X seven years ago, seemingly captioning the presumed chat between McKop and her son:

“Breathe. Calm down. Relax. Focus. Soft hands. Play the next ball. #LifeLessons.

“So grateful to have Zim legend Pernell McKop in my little goalkeeper’s life.”

Bulawayo-born McKop played for Zimbabwe’s oldest football club Highlanders in his hometown as well as three other local teams before taking his career to South Africa in the 1980s. In his post-playing days, Mckop became a successful goalkeepers’ trainer with different South African clubs.

Fletcher Smythe-Lowe (left) and Player of the Tournament Tylon Smith brandish their individual awards.

The 60-year-old ex-stopper was officially appointed the goalkeepers’ coach for Zimbabwe last September. He is the older brother of former Zimbabwe defender Henry McKop.