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Petros Kausiyo Deputy Sports Editor

ZIMBABWE Under-20 coach Mandla Mpofu will check on the state of his Under-20 squad when his Young Warriors take part in this year’s COSAFA tournament in Rustenburg, South Africa.Mpofu was thrust into in the key development post following the departure of his former boss Jairos Tapera for South Africa where he is now coaching First Division outfit Black Leopards.

The former Chicken Inn coach will also use the tournament to prepare the Young Warriors for their return to the African Under-20 Championships.

A draw for the COSAFA Under-20 groups will be staged on Wednesday at Moruleng Stadium where the Young Warriors, who are one of the top seeds, will be one of 13 teams from the Southern African region with Rwanda coming in as a guest nation for the tourney that will run from December 7-16.

It is the first time that the competition is returning since 2013.

COSAFA yesterday outlined in a statement how the tournament in Rustenburg would be conducted.

“The 2016 COSAFA Under-20 Championships, sponsored by PPC, a world-class provider of materials and solutions into the basic services sector, will be staged in South Africa’s North West province from December 7-16 when a new champion for the region will be crowned.

“It will be the first time the Under-20 tournament has been run since 2013, when South Africa claimed the title with a 2-0 victory over Kenya in the final.

“This year’s tournament will feature 14 sides, with East African guest nation Rwanda to take the place of COSAFA side Madagascar, who have declined to participate.”

The regional body also outlined how the teams would be grouped ahead of the draw.

“The pool phase of the competition will feature four groups – two of which will have four teams, and two with three sides. The draw for these pools will be made on Wednesday. But there are already some ‘knowns’.

“The teams have been seeded based on their performances at the 2013 COSAFA Under-20 Championships played in Lesotho. South Africa have already been handed position A1 in Group A as hosts, while Angola will be in position C1 in Group C.

“The other top seeds, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, will be drawn into either B1 or D1, the two pools that have three teams each.

“Pot 1 at Wednesday’s draw will contain the next highest-ranked five sides – Namibia, Lesotho, Comoros, Botswana and Zambia – while Pot 2 has Rwanda, Malawi, Swaziland, Mauritius and Seychelles. The first four teams drawn from Pot 1 will take up the second positions in Groups A-D, while the first four teams from Pot 2 will take up the third positions in the pools.”