Gone are those days!
The 2022/23 DStv Premiership season is finally here, as everything starts this coming weekend, and we are all so excited about it. Finally, the domestic league will be in action and we look forward to what should be an exciting season.
On PSL Board of Governors
I’d like to show appreciation to the PSL’s Board of Governors and thank them for the wonderful job they’ve done on maintaining the standard of the league despite all the challenges. They really made sure that there continues to be business in the league and looking at how some corporate companies pulled out, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, things could have gone terribly for our football had it not been for the BOG’s vision and planning. We were one cup competition less last season, but we’ve already seen the launch of a new cup competition that will start from next season. That’s going to inject muchneeded financial assistance into the game and an opportunity for teams to make money and compete.
We need to applaud the League’s hard-work and vision to continuously improve the standard of our football. I don’t think we give these guys the credit they deserve for the great job they are doing for our football.
Welcome, Natal Rich Boys!
Let me welcome Richards Bay FC to the DStv Premiership after winning promotion last season. It is not going to be an easy one, for sure, and* things are never going to be the same for them. This is a completely different ball game altogether, but for you to have achieved and gone this far, clearly there is a vision and plan in place. Surely you will be looking to get this team to the next level and compete. I’m sure you will be looking to emulate your neighbours, Royal AM, Sekhukhune United and Stellenbosch FC. who shook the league in their first season.
Maintaining your status will be very important and I have no doubt that you have it within you to do just that. After watching you guys play in the Premier’s Cup, you looked like a team that people will enjoy watching. Welcome to the PSL, Natal Rich Boys! To Swallows FC, especially coach Dylan Kerr for his amazing achievement, which is not something to be really proud of, saving teams from relegation. Every coach wants to win a trophy and that’s what people will always remember and I’m sure coach Dylan is no exception. Saving Swallows from relegation was a big thing and a massive achievement, which is nothing new to him.
I’m sure he will be looking to start afresh, after joining the team halfway through the campaign last season, and pull out all the stops to ensure that the team doesn’t find themselves in the same position again at the end of the season. I really hope they will have a better season and challenge for honours, even though they’ve lost some of their key players from last season. Let’s just hope that they will get everything in order so that they avoid leaving it to the promotion/relegation play-offs, which can be very tricky and stressful.
On player and coaches’ movement
This is a very interesting one to look at. I mean, what a massive exodus we’ve experienced during the off-season! It was both unbelievable and crazy to witness so many players leaving their teams to join others, while the coaching merry-go-round was also in full swing. It was really alarming and worrying, which leads one to ask, “Are we, indirectly, saying there are not enough coaches within the sport? What’s the criteria used by club bosses when it comes to such decisions?” It was really amazing to see these movements and I’m not too sure if this is going to make our game grow or it is just another merry-go-round as long as we keep the ball rolling.
At the end of the day, this is not me pointing a finger at anyone but just an observation on how things are unfolding within the teams. So much that is happening, and I don’t know how to explain this. I just hope someone out there understands what
I’m trying to say. It is a very scary situation because I’m looking at the next five years and trying to predict where our game will be if someone isn’t able to make the grade at one club and then, within a month, they are hired somewhere else, within the same league. I don’t know, I really
don’t know, but I will leave that to you, our wonderful reader, and see what you think. I’m sure you feel me and therefore are more than welcome to let me know what you think.
Still on movements, let’s leave the coaches and focus on the players. Hey, guys, what happened to the development, talent search and scouting? That surprise element every season? Gone are those days when we used to see teams parading new talent from the dusty streets of townships and rural areas! I’m talking about players that were unknown and came up to take the league by storm. A player who would perform magics for their team and become a household name from nowhere! Wow! I miss those days and wonder if I am ever going to experience them again? I would have really liked to see some unknown young talent being unveiled, leaving everyone to wonder what’s in store and what they are made of.
It has been a long time since I experienced a youngster that made me look forward to their team’s game so that I could see him in action.
Gone are those days! What’s so great about this is the fact that, administratively, we are doing well in the league. When we look at how the clubs are going about their business, it seems to be a complete opposite. Once again, I’m not pointing a finger or shooting at anyone, it is only my observation. As someone who is a product of the days I’m talking about here, don’t you think I’m allowed to talk about this and it is appropriate for me discuss this issue? It felt so good to see youngsters’ lives changed through football and this is not criticism. Where is Walter Steenbok to do some workshop on scouting? This is one coach who has gone overseas and holds a UEFA license on scouting. A close friend of mine, with whom I share so much about the game, and he has even written a book on scouting. New blood is needed for the future of this game. We can’t continue to live with deadwood without freshening things up and think everything is alright.
We are not utilising our people who are capacitated enough to change our game. Look at coach Pitso Mosimane, Manqoba Mngqithi, Steve Komphela, Desiree Ellis, Steve Barker, John Maduka, Eric Tinkler, to name just a few, it blows my mind that we are not taking advantage of having these people in our midst. I was blown away when I heard the news that Benni McCarthy had been hired by Manchester United and he is a typical example of what I’m talking about. Why are we not able to see what our own have and it takes people from the outside to see it?