Bafana’s former coach would kill for support Boucher has
Molefi Ntseki is probably curled up in his home in the foetal position right now and wondering why he doesn’t have the sort of friends that Proteas coach Mark Boucher has.
Ntseki is unemployed as we speak after his SA Football Association (Safa) employers told him to take a hike more than a month ago after Bafana Bafana failed to qualify for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
He might argue otherwise, but this is deserved. Bafana lost out on the last day of the qualifiers in April and the humiliation was made tougher by SA needing the bare minimum to qualify — a draw would have secured their trip to Cameroon. But this was undone by Sudan in a 2-0 defeat in Khartoum, and the anger prevails.
Safa, for a change, had the support of the public as Ntseki had contrived to not only embarrass this nation, but also spit in Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe’s face.
To be honest, few actually believed that Ntseki had the chutzpah to coach our national team. His departure was hardly viewed as a loss. Motsepe’s ascent to the top of the African football chain has served only to make the embarrassment that much deeper.
The SA mining magnate has been president for all of five minutes, but has had to stomach this embarrassment from his home country as this hugely ignominious development played out before his eyes.
The Mamelodi Sundowns owner is a proud man and this continued embarrassment must be tough for him. Anyway, Ntseki is without a job and he must be asking himself how this is possible when he hasn’t done too badly in his eyes, yet Boucher happens to still be the national cricket team coach.
Seriously folks, Boucher lives a charmed life and, incredibly, the people who should be criticising him spend much time firing barbs at Bafana, Safa, the PSL, Kaizer Chiefs and the tooth fairy. It boggles the mind.
I’ve seen cricket writers fire barbs at Safa and Bafana but suddenly issue featherweight whispers at Boucher and his Cricket SA director of cricket boss, Graeme Smith. What the blazes!
Boucher has lost five of eight Tests, won four of 16 T20s and won five of eight ODIs since 2019. That record is enough for a Bafana coach to lose his job. But things are not that simple at Cricket SA. Friends protect you, as Proteas Test opener Alviro Petersen told us.
Petersen said that he does not believe Smith will ever get tough with Boucher and fire him‚ despite the team’s run of poor results. “We can make as much noise as we want as former players‚ media‚ fans or whatever, but ultimately it depends on Graeme Smith,” he said.
Hectic! Boucher has no such problems. The man is living his best life while presiding over what can politely be described as a joke. I remember seeing some misguided person on Twitter saying Boucher is the best thing to ever happen to the Proteas. What the heck!
Anyway, Boucher clearly has friends in high places and the incredibly outspoken Petersen is adamant that is the case. Smith was vague about what is likely to happen to Boucher should he fail to reach targets. Smith described the coming months as a “crucial period”, between June and the end of the year.
There is little doubt that Boucher is firmly under the hammer after a summer of poor results, even though there are many mitigating circumstances.
“My perspective is that this is a crucial period for the players and management,” said Smith. Seriously, Ntseki would kill for this kind of support. Let’s face it, life will go on for Boucher. Noone will call him to order.
This man presides over a national team, but he’s friends with Smith and that currency is enough. Enough said. What a joke!
● Ntloko is the digital sports editor of Arena Holdings.