Benni can take his ball, we’ll get over it

One wonders whether Carlos Alberto Parreira, Bafana Bafana’s Brazilian mentor, will understand this, but most South Africans probably will identify with the story.

Years back, as far as one can remember, township urchins used to engage in “four-pal”, “challenge”, “chiallance” or whatever the matches were referred to in different parts of the country.

That was what every normal boy (those were the days before the gender equity political correctness) in the neighbourhood would do growing up. Unlike today, when some youngsters show no interest in the game whatsoever, even from an early age, we had no choice.

There were those who were referred to as dikgomo, inkomo (a cow) because they just could not play the game. The ones we used to say had two left feet and whose brains were not coordinated for the game of billions.

Almost all of this rare species always owned the ball and had to play – otherwise no game. He would easily take his ball home and call his favourite (read tolerant) friend to play in his own yard.

That would be when we would get up to other mischief. Besinga ncqengi... In those games we used to have guys you would regard as football “magicians”.

They could do any trick with the ball (one is trying hard to be modest here by talking of others) and that’s why our generation must be perhaps the last one that believes in skills and flair while the modern ones tell us there is no time for that.

Football is big business. Goals are what matters and that’s it.

Which brings us to the situation we presently find ourselves in.

Bafana Bafana have a big game coming up at the weekend. This is an Afcon 2008 qualifier and it doesn’t matter that Chad are ranked on the other side of 130 on the world standings, it is still very important.

Having said that, how are our preparations coming along? Not many of us know because we are caught up in the same old malaise. We are again victims of Benni McCarthy’s success and goalscoring prowess in his debut season with Blackburn Rovers in the English FA.

That McCarthy is among the best is without question and South Africans are typically happy for him.

But, do we have to forget the bigger picture, all because of his no-show antics? Please!

Back to our street games. We, in Matlaisane Street in Wattville, used to have Sonwabo Khalipa, aka Soweto, who could make the ball talk any language he wanted.

The only problem with Soweto was he couldn’t play comfortably with soccer boots on so he couldn’t feature much in the more organised amateur association games. He was also irabella. He used to be moody and wanted to be pampered (o ne a tefa).

When he couldn’t get his way with us, he would go join the guys in either Mathibedi, Moni or Mamkele streets.

Every time he did so, which was often, his new team would challenge us thinking he would destroy us. But, we were made of sterner stuff and never lost a game against any opponents he played for. He would always rejoin us and tell us how he regretted joining those “cows”.

The reason we always beat teams that Soweto joined was because we always said let him go, asimnqcengi (we don’t beg him).

The other day I heard Parreira say: “I won’t beg Benni.”

If I heard right, I know the guys in Matlaisane Street will agree with him 100 percent.

There should be life after Benni for South African soccer. Let him be and he will make a final decision at some stage. We just hope the country will be there for him!

Sports Indaba: Sello Rabothata