Читать книгу The Politics of South African Football - Alpheus Koonyaditse - Страница 8

foreword

While there are plenty of anecdotes about South African soccer – some hilarious, some sad and others bordering on the absurd – very little of this has been recorded, either in print or motion pictures. The wizardry of Kaizer “Chincha Guluva” Motaung, Cedric “Sugar Ray” Xulu, Ernest “Pro” Ramohai, Sly Mthimunye and others was never captured on film, since television only arrived in South Africa in 1975.

Those soccer followers who are now long in the tooth might want to know why I mention players from the seventies and don’t go even further back to the likes of Difference “City” Mbanya, Herbert “Shordex” Zungu and Stephen “Kalamazoo” Mokone. Kalamazoo went on to dazzle European crowds with his silky ball skills learned in the streets of Selbourne and by bouncing a tennis ball on his bedroom wall. The generation before included Darius Dhlomo, who ended up in Holland, and Albert “Hurry Hurry” Johansen, whose football prowess attracted the English club Leeds United.

It is with this backdrop that Oshebeng Alpheus Koonyaditse’s book is a more than welcome addition to the small clutch of printed works on South African football, which has such a rich history.

Having carved a niche for himself through his incisive and informative soccer shows on Motsweding FM, Koonyaditse’s passion for research comes out clearly on this book.

He goes deeply into how South African sportspeople were affected by the country’s draconian apartheid laws. Just how the hell he managed to get hold of team lists going back more than a century – including the names of the referee and coaches of a South African side that played against a selection team from Sao Paolo (Combinado Paulista) in 1906 – is a mystery. It shows just how much research he did for this book.

Individuals such as the late Confederation of African Football president, Yidnekatchew Tessema, and long-serving FIFA president Joao Havelange of Brazil are recognised for their roles. Many South African football administration stalwarts are also given much deserved recognition. Personally, I am very touched that Koonyaditse dedicates a whole chapter to Solomon “Stix” Morewa. Here is one man who did so much for South African football but who towards the end of his career was vilified and became a scapegoat, while others with whom he served on the SAFA executive, got away scot-free. Koonyaditse sets the record straight by pointing out that Morewa was the first to dream about this country hosting the World Cup, a dream that would materialise on June 11, 2010.

Koonyaditse also reminds us of how great a role African countries such as Ghana, Nigeria and others played in getting South Africa expelled from international sports bodies such as the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the International Olympics Committee. It is one of those books that one feels should be declared a set-book for history students. It is certainly a must read, not only for football fundis but even for the man in the street who doesn’t give a hoot about the ‘game of the pig skin’.

S’Busiso Mseleku S’Busiso Mseleku is City Press Sports Editor and has been covering South African football for more than 25 years.