Safa and Mashaba “a tale of two racists”
I’m livid, not just livid but done, done with the politics, done with the excuses, done analyzing a corrupt organization.
Keagan Dolly, one of SA’s top footballers at the moment, in the form of his life, doesn’t get a national call-up.
Each manager has his own style and that’s okay, but this is not the first time we’ve seen this farcical image.
Not a while back, SuperSport United had an excellent left winger on top form that went on to become South Africa’s most successful local player ever. But continuously never got called up and dare I say it, for being coloured.
After years of pressure from the media, he did get a handful of call-ups but mostly as a substitute. The player I’m talking about is Daine Klate, still in top form but apparently not a realistic player for the fallacy that is our 2022 Plan.
Coloureds not getting a chance in the national team is something that is known in Cape Town and has become a norm, even though the rest of South Africa chose to stay oblivious.
I remember a simpler time when Capetonians would get livid at the injustice, but it seems that they’ve given up. And, that’s one of the reasons Cape Town stadium is consistently empty, the reason that Bafana don’t often play in Cape Town.
We’ve gone from trying to fight the system to realizing that change can only happen when we cut off the tip of the tree of Safa.
Has anyone ever noticed that when Bafana play in Cape Town, they include one or two Ajax players just for the political side of football which shouldn’t even exist?
It is a topic that I can analyse so deeply, and explain how the system of labeling blacks and coloureds as “People of colour” has allowed politicians to deliberately neglect coloureds just like the BEE act, but I have a word limit and that’s essentially off topic.
And, even if we were to say, but Kyle these are two isolated incidents and you cannot judge an organization because a manager chooses the team.
That’s when it gets really insulting.
If anyone remembers the under-17 world cup that SA competed in last year. Not one Ajax Cape Town player was called up, need I remind you that this was the team that did not only win the Engen under-17 tournament in Cape Town but won the national tournament too.
It makes you wonder who selects these teams? Do they even scout In Cape Town? According to what statistics is squad selection based on? These are questions that reporters have stopped asking due to it being shrugged off by Safa.
Kermit Erasmus too – was pushed to the point that he vented on twitter about not making the Bafana team and understandably so, he was in the form of his life and reaped the benefits by securing a European move to France.
No wonder, Bafana Bafana are the joke of the country. The more these politicians push the idea of transformation, you get the sense that they don’t care who’s selected as long as the squad represents the demographics of South Africa unless we talking about soccer, then it’s the “best players” that should be in the team.
And although I’m not part of the cacophony who preaches that more coloureds should be in the national team, as I believe the best players should be picked. It’s just upsetting to see that these politics still exist.
As this opinion piece reaches a Safa members eyes and he laughs at my rage and their misuse of power, the old age proverb says that “he who laughs last, laughs best”.
So when you don’t qualify for the world cup, when you get knocked out of the Afcon early and when you fail to make the Chan tournament and when Safa vision 2022 becomes dim and fails. The rest of South Africa will be laughing at you.
Its politically and racially pathetic. I repeat. Keegan Dolly… Kermit Erasmus… Daine Klate.. Move on.. Adopt another nationality if possible because your years of dedication and sporting talents will be wasted. Bryce moon? Bevan Fransman? Even the hardest working and best box to box midfielder in Dean Furman has dissapeard??? In 96′ when we won something as a ‘footballing nation’ we had an equal handful of coloured players, now, just one.. 1 finger on that hand and its the middle one. Rivaldo Coetzee hang in there, but also be done ready to be ommited anytime.. Anytime..
Look at the success of coloured players:
Benni McCarthy – 1st football player (worldwide) to be on the cover of Time magazine.
Quinton Fortune – 1st and Only Player to play for one of the best teams in the WORLD – Man Utd.
Steven Pienaar – Massive success in English Premier League.
Delron Buckley – Years spent in Europe – Successfuly.
I agree with the author of this letter.My son Zaid Patel has been overlooked for bafana u23 even though he scored in his last match vs Sudan.
Of Indian origin he has had to face 6 tumultuous years in the psl and nfd being loaned from wits to Chippa,black aces,free state stars,Cape Town all stars and now Amazulu.Thank goodness the same bureaucracy that rules other psl teams don’t affect Wits or who are fair balanced and non biased.when will the true talents get the opportunities that they too have worked hard for???
I am appalled that in 2016,we still have people this myopic. People who cant see beyond their nationalist drivel. Keegan Dolly a fine talent is omitted from the national team and you cry racism? Really? Is Dolly not our under 23 team captain that is bound for Brazil? You think Shakes doesnt communicate with Owen da Gama regarding his selection? As for Quinton Fortune did he not give SA the finger when all was rosy at Man U and he opted to go Disney Land. You also conviniently forget how Jomo Sono abritrarily dropped an inform Hans Vonk for Andre Arend se kind? Whose blunders cost us a place in the last 16 of the 2002 World Cup? There have been plenty of “”coloured” players who have represented this country. Nasief Morris, Elrio van Heerden, Bennie, Stanton Fredericks, Pienaar, Shaun Bartlett etc. As for Klate do you think Klate at his best can match Simphiwe Tshabalala at his best? Kermit was ommited due to Shakes arrogance, when people say Erasmus he ignores them.Because he is an egotist not a racist.
I have to agree with the author as well. Years of fighting for equality and now not only at the Universities on the job front but this has crept into Sport. I was lucky enough to be part of a successful Santos u/19 squad in the late 90’s and fortunate enough to play with and against the likes of Nasief Morris, Benni McCarthy, Quinton Fortune, Steven Pienaar and many more. As mentioned in a post above, SA football’s most successful period was the mid 90’s to early 2000’s when there was a mix of players, black, white and coloured. Mark Williams top goal scorer at 96 African Cup, Shaun Bartlett and Mark Fish both played for Charlton in the EPL. Andre Arendse and many others. What has disappointed me about SA football is not only the omission or overlooking of quality coloured players time and time again, but also the almost complete omission of white players. For example, the SA squad for the 2010 WC only Matthew Booth was selected. Then only Dean Furman pretty much since then. SAFA are basically telling white (along with coloured) South African footballers that they will never be good enough to represent their country. Again the players that helped SA football during the 96 AFCON, Neil Tovey, Andrew Tucker, Shane McGregor and others. Later you had the likes of Bradley Carnell, Booth etc….Why does South African politics enforce the SA rugby team and cricket team have “x” amount of players of colour, yet the same does not apply to the football team??? I am so pleased that my son has a British and Canadian passport (along with his SA passport), because if (or when) he is good enough at whichever sport he choses when he is older he has options…..I feel for the likes of Dane Klate, Keagan Dolly and players of the past, Shaheem Bobbs, Treswall Overmeyer, Vaughan Less and loads more who never given a fair chance.
Coloured footballers have no chance. Lets look at how transformation is forced in Rugby and Cricket on our national front. Yet in Soccer polices, it`s not deemed a necessity. The top goal scorers are coloured from Cape Town, how is it, that still our strikers do not get called up? So whenever a player wears a Chiefs or Pirates jersey he is classified as being `international quality` but as a Ajax/Santos/Milano player he needs to move in order to be given the chance?
It will never change where the administration is concerned .
Hi Guys.
I have to agree with you, how can Shakes pick Tokelo Rantie who’s been deregistered from Bournemouth’s first team and still ommit Kermit Erasmus, Ithu Khune get’s picked over 1st choice Rieyaad Pieterse at Chiefs.
I played at Santos and won the (Bayhill Tournament) Metropolitan Cup in 2000,I don’t mind teams getting invited to the tournament but happens to all the talent if 70% are from outside Cape Town and Overseas even Africa where’s is any of our boys ever gonna get an opportunity to Represent there national under 20 team. So let’s also look at Safa Cape Town and the Sponsors and clubs involved as a whole.
Bafana is crap. I’m never watch them again. They deserve to be where they are. I say players who are overlooked, go overseas if you can.
I totally agree with the writer. Years ago my boys attended a selection process to represent SAFA Midlands. Needless to say the team was 99% Black. A few weeks later we played them a friendly and thrashed the selected team 6-0. I have never encouraged non-Black players to attend trials as it is fruitless. Good luck to us commenting as all our opinions will be greeted with contempt. We need to rid soccer of all these arrogant suits who claim to be so well schooled in soccer issues. And for Banana I get heartburn watching such crap.
If these coloured are as great as claim. Why is it that Ajax “predominantly coloured team” havent won the PSL tittle since inception.Why has the likes of Grandwald Scott, Stanton Lewis, most recently Aboubacar Mobara failed to make the grade at Ajax Amsterdam if they were so great. Maybe SAFA should introduce quatas as well.If sure y’all were happy when CSA at Haroon Lorgat’s behest insinsted on half fit Vernon Philander ahead of Kyle Abbott you were happy when we lost against New Zealand at last World Cup!!
Banana…like the ANC…is useless. Speak of service delivery…there’s problems… speak of transformation…there’s problems….speak of fairness…theres problems.
In the passed….us as coloureds weren’t white enough…now…we not black enough. Face it…it’s an ugly truth.
However…the flip side of the coin…black supports black…white supports white…Indian supports Indian…but us…only a handful will support you especially when its beneficial to them.
When there is something wrong from service delivery to sporting selections…we sit back and just accept it in the face of the public. We hide behind closed doors and vent to friends and family and in our little social groups. This is why we will never move forward…it’s because we all shut up when its time to speak out and fight.
Back to sport…rugby…it’s slowly headed towards the state of our national soccer team…the only difference is that its still managed by a string of different races…INCLUDING coloureds. Soccer on the other hand used to be classified as the nation’s sport…it’s now a black man’s sport. You all think it…you all know it. Even the advert on the radio says:
Vusi is a soccer player…we wants to be a proud black man and play for his country…etc etc
It’s like this…an African American comedian can make live jokes about a white man and call them crackers…white trash…rednecks…but NEVER will you ever see a white man aim jokes at blacks because its politically incorrect…THE SAME THING IN THIS COUNTRY…transformation favours one race and its a FACT.
I commend you for writing something so TRUTHFUL and with EMOTION. There are to many things now attached with this beautiful game, especially in South Africa. When our SAFA commity and club officials are being probed because of bribery to host the WORLD CUP and fix matche, then we really have problems. When KHUNE is not playing for most of the season, and gets a Bafana call up. You know we have problems. When other other keepers have been playing and doing a good job in his absence and get side lined because hes “match fit”, you know we have problems. When Khune plays one match and gets a Bafana call up, after playing ONE match, you know we have problems. What about Darren Keet? Hes been playing regularly overseas, but only gets considered for a number 3 position in Bafana. When the Capetonian, Tawfeeq Salie, from Maritzburg United gets side lined after winning TWO man of the matches in succession,and doing well in all his games. He gets sidelined when Ernest Middendorp, and the club bosses cant give answers as to why 3 players left the club when Middendorp arrived. Our football is suffering because of these issues and it needs to be addressed. These people are ruining and exploiting our players.
This is what our belived country has come to. Black settlers & white settlers, willfully depriving us, disempowering, disrespecting us and refusing to acknowledge us for who we truely are, the 1st Nation/Aboriginal/Khoen (khoi) &. San (Bushman), Nation, and all those termend as coloreds, after centuries of stealing from us, EVEYTHING!!! And I am gratefull that people, more so colored people is losing faith in this system that is build on RACIAL BLACK & WHITE LIES & DECEIT.
The reason why we always excell in everything above these races is becos we R the TRUELY BLESSED AND FAVOURED PEOPLE, AS IS THIS SOIL AND LAND. WAKE UP & SMELL THE COFFE. ALL THOSE TREATED IN THIS MANNER OF THIS, SO CALLED COLOURED NATION, UNITE & COME INTO OUR COMMUNITIES OF DRUGS, GANGSTERISM, WITH OUR YOUTH that has lost hope, come and lets built clinics and develop and share your Godgiven talents and act as ambassadors and role models, and soon we will have our own indigenous aboriginal teams to go play abroad. Of wich you will not only be our SUOER HEROUS BUT ALSO BE NOTED IN HISTORY FOR WHO YOU TRUELY ARE AND YOUR CONTRIBUTION. THIS NATION NEED YOU.
100% corrrect new government is all about colour.