I told my mother to stop working
Last weekend saw the Nedbank Cup Last 16 action heating up and, unfortunately, University of Pretoria is the only lower division side remaining in the tournament, after their impressive 2-1 win against Moroka Swallows. They have now drawn Mamelodi Sundowns in the quarterfinals, in what should be an interesting Tshwane Derby. Congratulations to all the teams that have made it to the Last 8 and things can only get better because they are getting closer to the final. I wish them all the best. Doc tournament – This was a special tournament
On Sunday, March 17th, I had the pleasure of hosting a tournament which I thought was a great success. It was appreciated so much by the people from Dube, Soweto, where I was born and raised. Let me express my gratitude to the Gauteng Sports, Arts and Culture Department for the wonderful support they gave us. They really made things happen and I am honoured and humbled by the support and this is something I have to share with our readers.
Normally, people complain about government not delivering but these guys coming on board made a huge difference to our event. That’s why I’m forever grateful to them for their assistance. They showed the love and community-driven approach, which is exactly what we need in our society. What a successful tournament it was! I really want to thank them for such a wonderful gesture.
I just hope and pray that we keep this partnership for years to come, as it benefits everyone involved, especially the kids. I must give them credit for playing such an important role in the tournament. I must also thank the other stakeholders that came on board to sponsor our tournament and make things happen for the kids. Obviously, those were our external partners and I would also like to thank our internal partners who worked so diligently for weeks, to ensure that we hosted a successful and fantastic event.
This was a special tournament in the sense that it was meant to test the waters. My original tournament is in August and that’s where we will get about 50 teams to participate but this one, it was different because it was a “Doc Khumalo Ultimate Champions tournament”. I had an idea to bridge the massive 12-month gap and having to wait for the next August before I could do anything for our kids, by organising this winner-takes-all tournament. It takes too long to get to the next tournament and that is exactly why I introduced this tournament and I also made sure to have it played this past weekend so that it doesn’t clash with other people’s Easter tournaments and their preparations.
The aim and purpose – They must reap their rewards
This tournament was meant to encourage young athletes to focus on sport and enjoy themselves in a positive way. Sport is one of the most powerful weapons or tools that our children can use to improve their lives and those of their families. Sport also takes them away from the streets and eliminates a lot of negative energy around them, when they are in their happy space. Also, we put this tournament together to enhance the players’ families. You must be wondering and asking how we did that? Well, the champions of my August tournament from U19, U17 and U15 played in this tournament against select teams from around Gauteng. This happened for both football and netball and we opted to deposit the prize money into the players’ parents’ bank accounts. The winners shared the prize money among themselves, and it was not given to the clubs they played for or the coaches of the select teams. By so doing, we are teaching these young players responsibility and ensuring that they do something for their families by putting food on the table through sport. When the season starts, parents sometimes find it difficult to cope because we have just come from the December break and the schools re-open soon, so there is a lot of financial burden on them. So, this kind of gesture was to give the parents a break and teach the young players about the importance of providing for their families, young as they are. This is not to make them pay back their parents, they can never be able to do that, but it is about showing appreciation to their parents and families who have been looking after them all these years. This comes from what I used to do for my parents. My salary used to go into their accounts because they always looked after my finances. When I started playing for Kaizer Chiefs, I told my mother to stop working because I was going to provide for her and the family. You can imagine from 1987 up to four years ago when my mother took her last breath, I took care of her. This is what I want to pass onto these young boys and girls to teach them about the importance of showing love and appreciation to our parents. We are our parents’ investment and they must reap their rewards, at some point.
The lessons – They were blown away
I’m sure the players learned something new from this tournament and I hope they always keep that exercise in mind so that they can apply it throughout their lives. We have to teach them from a young age about things like handling finances and not just give them money to buy alcohol and all these other things that are not going to benefit them. We want them to appreciate their parents through the money they’ve earned themselves because that’s the bigger picture. We are also eliminating the negative behaviour of spending their money on unnecessary things. We can all see what is happening with our youth and, through this tournament, we are trying to keep them on the straight and narrow. We also want to remind them that they might be a shining star in the community or their respective teams but, when they get home, they remain kids and should keep that in mind.
The government found our proposal very positive and they were blown away by this initiative, which is why they wasted no time in getting behind it. Also, we want to ensure that everyone goes to the August tournament with one thing in mind: winning the tournament so that they can play select teams the following year and stand a chance to win big.
The support – I need to make a special mention…
It is mazing how the universe works sometimes. While the tournament was going on, I was approached by a friend I used to go to school with – he’s also from Dube, Mofolo – and he told me they have eight women’s teams and they want them to become part of this tournament. Can you believe it?
These guys are looking to improve women’s football and produce players for our Banyana Banyana. I told them, without hesitation, that they should consider their teams as part of our August tournament because they are in line with what we are trying to achieve. Now we are looking for two more teams, to make it 10. I was so humbled and touched by this request because, like I said, this is what this tournament is all about. I really thank God for this initiative and the impact it has already had.
The least I’m trying to do for my community gets a lot of support and that doesn’t go unnoticed. What a perfect day last Sunday was! The winners were singing and giving praises to the tournament organisers, all the sponsors and the government for the wonderful time everyone had. The street vendors also had a successful business day because they enjoyed a lot of support from the community. We also had marshals that were assigned to make sure everything went according to plan.
That was a clear indication that this was not just about Doctor Khumalo but the whole community of Dube, Soweto. Everyone benefitted and they can’t wait for the August edition, which runs over two weeks. I need to salute former footballers who graced our tournament with their presence. Lucas Radebe, Siphiwe Tshabalala, Reneilwe Letsholonyane, Edward Motale, Japie Motale, Tshepo Molatedi, Thapelo Liau, Molefi Ntsoelengoe, Eugene Zwane, Masters’ President Jacob “Buddha” Mathathe and SAFA Soweto President Phil Mogodi and so many more. It was unbelievable!
I need to make a special mention for Vuyo’s Funerals, a good friend and community entrepreneur in Soweto. This was a second time he’s partnered with us on these initiatives, after spending time together at Daliwonga High School back in the day. This man, together with his wife, was just unbelievable! They took care of the catering in the marquee tents and all I needed to do was to put a phone call through to him, to ask for assistance.
They brought some of their staff members to help and that was really good to see, our successful people giving back to their community. We expect to see more of these kinds of things in our communities so that we encourage change. People should forget about politics or differences and come together to improve their communities. With God on our side, we are going to host one of the best tournaments in the country in August. We have a lot of good things lined up and I really hope my dream of hosting the “Doctor Khumalo tournament” across the country becomes a reality soon because I know there is a lot of raw talent out there. That would be my best way of thanking everyone for the wonderful support I enjoyed throughout my football career. I’m still enjoying that support post my playing days and it would only be fair to give back to the country that made me who I am today.