Zim Under 20 in group of death

The draw for the annual COSAFA Under- 20 Championships were held this week after an absence dating back to 2013 with Zimbabwe in the group of death.
By Tendai Chisiri
Zimbabwe has won the championship six times and came second 3 times. Zambia have been the most successful side in the history of the COSAFA Under-20 Championships with 10 victories to their name, South Africa have claimed five titles with Madagascar the only other team to lift the trophy after their 2005 triumph.

The first round draw for the 2016 COSAFA Under-20 Championships, sponsored by PPC, was made on Wednesday in Moruleng in South Africa’s North West province, where the prestigious youth tournament will be held from December 7-16, bringing together the best young talent from the Southern African region.
Hosts and defending champions South Africa will have their work cut-out in the defense of their title as they take on neighbours Lesotho, Swaziland and Botswana in Group A, all teams that have caused problems in the past.
With only the top team in each pool to advance to the semifinals, there will also be an early exit for one of the region’s heavyweights as Group B contains Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi, three teams who might all consider themselves contenders for the title.
Group C contains Angola, Namibia, Seychelles and Mauritius, while Group D has Mozambique, Comoros Islands and East African guest nation Rwanda, who compete in the place of Madagascar.
The teams will play each other in a round-robin format with the top sides from each pool advancing to the semifinals.
One twist is that the top teams in Groups B and D after the second round of matches will play a third game as a crossover fixture between those two pools, to ensure that most competing sides get to play three times.
The top team in Group B will play the second team in Group D and vice-versa.
The group matches start on December 7 and will be completed on December 13. The semifinals will take place a day later, before the remaining teams enjoy a rest day.
The third-place play-off and final of the competition will both be played on December 16, which is a public holiday in South Africa.