Kick Off August 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed many ills in our society that we knew existed but never really imagined the extent or depth of. From the poor healthcare system which is proving to be inadequate in terms of dealing with the number of people admitted to hospitals; poor education facilities which left many parents removing their children from schools for this calendar year and the socio-economic problems which unfortunately resulted in a loss of income for many people, as well as the rebirth of the Black Lives Matter movement. Whoever said, “only when the tide goes out do you discover who has been swimming naked”, hit the nail on the head. All these problems have always been there, but when the COVID-19 tide hit us hard, it exposed every aspect of…

Football is a humanitarian platform The uncertainty which has been wrought by the COVID-19 and GBV (gender-based violence) has opened our eyes to how football is weaved in the fabric of humanity. The game had become a channel of humanitarian assistance these days. Footballers, ex-footballers and coaches the world over had been donating cash and kind to help to assuage people’s fears and agonies caused by the pandemic. During these trying times, football had shifted from being an entertainment industry to a charitable and motivational industry. I was inspired when I heard that Doctor Khumalo and fellow former players like Lucky Lekgwathi, Thapelo Liau, Tebogo Moloi, and many others, had embarked on a programme to visit the offenders of the gender-based violence, asking them why they are doing these things…

GOOD MONTH FOR… LIVERPOOL Thirty years is a long time to wait for a league title for a club of Liverpool’s stature, but they have finally broken their Premier League duck, and in some style too under manager Jurgen Klopp. BAD MONTH FOR… BIDVEST WITS FANS You pour your heart and soul into a football club and then in the blink of an eye it is gone ALSO LAST MONTH… Coach Lehlohonolo Seema makes the switch from Bloemfontein Celtic to Chippa United. Celtic appoint John Maduka, who had acted as co-coach with Seema, to lead the team. Premier Soccer League (PSL) chairman Irvin Khoza says they hope to conclude the 2019/20 season by August 31, a deadline they set with FIFA. The PSL officially rubberstamp the sale of Bidvest Wits’…

Mamelodi Sundowns’ decision to sign Themba ‘Mshishi’ Zwane almost a decade ago was greeted with suspicion by those that felt there was no justification in the club bringing an amateur footballer. Zwane was snapped from third-tier Vardos FC and arrived on the same day as Teko Modise, who had joined from Orlando Pirates in January 2011. Then 21, Zwane was scrawny looking and appeared rather stunned that he was now about to share the same dressing room as World Cup stars Modise, Katlego Mphela and Surprise Moriri. What made his situation even more awkward was that he was due to compete with Modise for a place in the team. And so, during his first six months he didn’t play under coaches Antonio Lopez Habas and Ian Gorowa. Even after being…

KICK OFF: How much of a disturbance has the coronavirus pandemic been to you? Tshegofatso Mabasa: It has been a huge disturbance because I feel like the team was at a turning point and we had picked up good form to continue winning games and end the season strongly. It has been a bit of a disruption for us and what is worse is that this is something new considering that no-one in the world has ever experienced something like this before. It is a matter of adjusting to it and try to keep fit as best as possible. On a personal level I have been working out and we have been having our routine zoom sessions with the team. We cannot dispute that all our lives have been disrupted.…

Ever sat down and recalled just how difficult your upbringing was, especially when you are from a background of poverty but somehow managed to turn into success? Those are the thoughts that Willard Katsande wakes up to as he reminisces about the days when he didn’t know where his next meal would come from. The Kaizer Chiefs midfielder didn’t have it easy in his life after being born in Mutoko, Zimbabwe as the second youngest and only boy from a family of seven kids. When his father, who worked for Coca-Cola, passed away, Willard had just turned 10 and it marked the start of what would then be a dark phase in his life, which included having to fend for his next meal while staying with his sister after their…