Ekstein could become an Amakhosi legend
THE biggest challenge from now is that an expectation has been created and it must be met consistently.
A man can only meet the expectation consistently if he is aware. Which is where we are. We need to try to create that awareness, guide and protect him.
The above is what Steve Komphela waxed lyrical about while we were sitting in his tiny office.
There’s a brutal wind blowing around Naturena Village as kit managers prepare the training apparel ahead of the soon-to-arrive players as our conversation steers in the direction of Hendrick Ekstein, the Chiefs wonderkid.
With their Orlando Pirates counterparts oohing and aahing over the silky skills of Thabo Rakhale, you don’t need to beat your brain out to figure that the Chiefs crowd want a counter of their own.
Komphela’s predecessor, Stuart Baxter, was careful about throwing the lad from Randfontein, Ekstein, in at the deep end last season.
Amakhosi fans are expressing their admiration now that Komphela has been bold enough to unleash Ekstein in the Soweto derby a couple of weeks ago.
There have been dribblers to the back of the moon at Chiefs — Jabu Pule, Scara Ngobese, Skapie Malatsi, Junior Khanye.
Pule and Ngobese were undeniably the real deal.
The duo were match winners who could grab the game by the scruff of the neck.
Pule and Ngobese were effective and entertaining in equal measure, but Ekstein should be better than that to become a hero who will hold a special place in the hearts of the hard-to-please faithful.
My submission is that there is something in that busybody which every attacking player should not shy away from showing: the arrogance to take on the opponents.
His game can improve tenfold if he eliminates a glaring element — there are moments when he has better options to his left or right.
Instead of laying the ball off to his unmarked options, Ekstein would opt for a shot that is seldom on target.
Shooting in itself is not a bad thing. It screams confidence and fearlessness, and must be encouraged.
Where it becomes wrong is when a shot does not even put the goalkeeper in a spot of bother, allowing for a chance to go to waste when passing to a better-positioned teammate could have produced the desired result.
It boils down to one thing —
Pule and Ngobese were effective and entertaining in equal measure. Ekstein should better that
decision-making. The same thing Shakes Mashaba always preaches: What to do. Where to do it. When to do it. Why are you doing it?
Decision-making is a great deficiency among our footballers.
But Komphela is not overly concerned in the case of Ekstein.
“This is no time for reprimanding. It is time for introduction, induction and guidance. It’s time for perseverance.
“The game is the best teacher because decision-making comes at the back of experience. That is what will guide him in terms of his decisions going forward.
“We understand he needs hours in his legs in the PSL. After a couple of matches, that is when you raise your voice and thicken the throat to reprimand.
“For now it is the era for patience with him. At some stage we will leave him like an eaglet to be exposed and take charge.”
It is also time to make sure that awareness is something that is inculcated in footballers. When a player is aware of what is happening around him/her on the field of play, it not only informs but also improves his/her decision-making.
Players such as Ekstein need to integrate that simple basic in order for their irrepressible skills and undeniable talent to come to the fore more than is currently the case.