Look to rest of province, Chippa told
Tap into talent of whole region, says Safa
SAFA national executive committee member and provincial representative Mzimkhulu Fina has urged Chippa United’s management to spread its wings and tap into talent throughout the Eastern Cape. Fina said he was thrilled that the Chilli Boys were able to retain their Premier Soccer League (PSL) status, as their presence at the top level brought immense value to the development of soccer in the Eastern Cape.
He, however, said Chippa should learn from their past mistakes and display confidence and attempt to nurture players in the whole province.
“Chippa should not only be a Port Elizabeth team but a team of the entire region.
“I would like to see them play some of their home games in East London or Mthatha, if the stadiums there are in a good enough state,” Fina said.
“They should also involve themselves more in programmes that are hosted by the region and not only take part in tournaments that are played in Cape Town.”
Fina said Safa would like to be more involved in Chippa United’s planning for next season.
He said the team should also work on marketing their brand, not only Port Elizabeth.
Safa NMB president Monde Mhletywa also applauded the Chilli Boys for staying in the PSL, but said the team needed to fulfil their promises to the Nelson Mandela Bay metro.
His biggest gripe was the lack of development structures at the club.
“Chippa must take youth football development into consideration. If they don’t focus on developing the youth, their future cannot be guaranteed,” Mhletywa said.
“As a soccer club you should have a youth structure, not just have it on paper.
“They must play in the Local Football
Association (LFA) level so they have regular game time.
“In that way, a broad base of well-trained players will be created to support their senior team.
“Without that, the Chilli Boys will continue to hire players from outside the metro – which would mean the sense of ownership with the PE residents will be far less.”
“There were a number of promises that were made by them, in terms of the development of soccer here in this area.
“They should also have local players training with their senior team.
“There have been no coaching clinics and classes.
“Those promises were not fulfilled,” Mhletywa said.
The visibility of Chippa United’s players was also very important.
“The players must visit schools and malls when they are not playing to increase their fan base.”
Despite the broken promises, Mhletywa said Chippa’s stay in the Bay had been of great value.
“Football fans saw the return of professional soccer to the Bay and people from here are employed in different areas at Chippa.
“Chippa’s coach for the last two games, [Velile Eddie] Dyaloyi is from here, in Zwide, and he has been part of football structures for years. That was encouraging because faith had been put in a local coach,” Mhletywa said.
Chippa United’s chief operations officer Lukhanyo Mzinzi said the club would hold a meeting with Safa Eastern Cape to resolve the issues it had.
“Our priority was to become stable as a team. We have a squad from Port Elizaberth that took part in the Mutlichoice Diski Challenge and an under-19 team that represented us in Cape Town.
“We just completed the under-17 trials. So there is a lot that we have done,” Mzinzi said.