The KC entourage arrived in Seoul on Saturday at 07:20am (South Korean time).

After checking in at the Grand Hilton where they were cordially welcomed by the SA Embassy and the Peace Cup organising committee, the players and technical staff went to rest as they were due for training that afternoon.

The team's first session was held at the training grounds outside the Seoul WC Stadium that is an active shopping centre when not engaged for soccer games.

The World Cup autograph and picture wall is erected at the entrance and it was nice to see that our own Cyril Nzama was portrayed as a World Cup hero with his picture and autograph being part of it.

The following day (13.07.03) the team trained at the Korean Football Federation training grounds situated approximately 45 minutes from Seoul in Paju.

The facilities and infrastructure in South Korea are amazing the team and technical staff are amazed at the conditions of the pitches.

"It will motivate the players to perform at their level best on pitches of this quality, it makes them more aggressive and willing to go that extra mile," said assistant coach Ace Khuse.

After the morning training and lunch the team departed for Daejeon by bus.

The city of Deajeon is about 2hr bus drive from Seoul (approx 155 km). After settling in at the Spapia Hotel where the Korean team was hosted during the world cup 2002, the team had another training session scheduled.

The above mentioned hotel is a landmark for the locals as a matter of fact the 11th floor where the team has been allocated with rooms, is the floor dedicated to the players of the Korean National team.

Each room is named after a player and his jersey number, there are pictures on the door and in the rooms with relevant autographs. In the entrance and on the 2nd floor there are walls fully decorated with pictures and memorabilia including a framed official soccer ball used by the team in one of their games.

The passion and the patriotism for their national team comes across very strongly.

The team is off for their morning session at the moment and will be training at the Deajeon WC Stadium this evening (18h00 Korean time), as tomorrow the team will be playing their first game against Olympique Lyonnais at 19h30 (11:45 SA time live on SS3).

The French team is only arriving today in Seoul and driving straight to Deajeon from the airport, however all the rest of the teams have already arrived.

Bobby Motang, Thami Myaluza and Putco Mafani are attending the pre-match meeting this morning in Seoul at the Lotte Hotel and will be joining the team in Deajeon thereafter.

The team is upbeat and ready to give their best, they understand that this is an experience of a life time where their talent and capabilities as individuals and as a team will be showcased in front of an international audience.

"We are here as ambassadors of our country South Africa and to represent our continent Africa in the name of 'Love & Peace'.

"We are aware of the high level of competitively of the tournament in terms of teams participating and we are ready to take on the challenge. Our main objective is obviously to win however it is important that the players go on the field of play to enjoy themselves and to do their best," stated Amakhosi Player of the Year Stanton Fredericks in a media interview for the local television.