Will snarky Stan wilt under Pitso’s wit?
At what point does banter between rivals degenerate into disrespect? We’ve come to expect witty exchanges between rival politicians, football coaches, players and competitors, but at what point do these provocative barbs deteriorate into abuse and tasteless insult?
These and many other questions that seek to make sense of what is or isn’t acceptable often come up ahead of elections, on the eve of sports matches and even in the National Assembly.
In most cases, the insults are very loud. Attempts to restore dignity and respectability are drowned out by behaviour that would embarrass a drunken sailor.
It’s one thing to engage robustly and challenge an opposing view, but another to belittle and humiliate your rival or opponent.
Observers asked these questions when Vaal University of Technology (VUT) coach Stanley Nkoane appeared to enjoy his moment in front of the lights and cameras a little too much a few days ago.
VUT were drawn against top-flight side Golden Arrows in the last-32 stage of the Nedbank Cup, and the lower tier upstarts were determined to make a splash.
The two sides don’t play in the same league and wouldn’t ordinarily meet on the pitch, but the Nedbank Cup is the only competition on the calendar that gives lower-tier sides a chance to test themselves against their illustrious premiership counterparts. The format is a godsend.
Nkoane got the ball rolling early last week when he said his Arrows counterpart, Steve Komphela, was an open book and he wouldn’t spend sleepless nights stressing about the meeting between the two sides.
He took things a step further when he taunted Komphela later in the week.
Asked‚ in a tongue-in-cheek question during a media conference‚ about Komphela’s renowned profligacy in the use of the English language‚ Nkoane said: “English will not be playing football on the day.”
Some folks on Twitter asked Komphela to respond to Nkoane, but the Arrows coach, a renowned gentleman, resisted the temptation to engage in a tasteless spat.
For those who don’t know,
Nkoane is himself a former VUT player who retired in 2014 and worked as an assistant until his elevation to the top job in January 2017.
Some have argued we should cut him some slack as it was his inexperience with the media and the attention that led him down this slippery slope.
It has to be said that he backed up his provocative words with action at the weekend when VUT dumped Arrows out of the Cup. This man’s ambition burns bright.
But the question is: did he go too far? Komphela certainly thought so if his response on Twitter is anything to go by.
And perhaps in the surest sign that the soccer gods have a delightful sense of humour, VUT were pitted against Mamelodi Sundowns when the draw for the next stage of the Cup was conducted on Monday.
It is going to be Pitso Mosimane vs Nkoane, and fans are already rubbing their hands with glee.
The fact is the wily Sundowns coach is an old hand at this type of thing, and will relish the opportunity to silence Nkoane. Don’t forget that Mosimane himself often says the craziest things and deliberately goes out of his way to infuriate the opposition with stinging jibes that always hit the mark.
He has left many victims strewn in his path over the years and seems to love it when he manages to get under the skin of an opponent.
Some will argue that he’s earned the right to shoot his mouth off because he’s won Africa’s biggest club competition (the CAF Champions League), the CAF Super Cup, the domestic league title a few times and numerous other cup competitions.
Can Nkoane say the same thing? He will certainly meet his match in that prematch media conference, and it’s not too farfetched to suggest that the line between banter and disrespect could be crossed a few times.
We can’t wait.