Andrew Muchineripi : Soccer
Developments during the opening days of the new year suggest that South Africa could soon have the best administered and worst attended national championship on the continent.
Let us begin with the good news that the sponsors of the Castle Premiership have increased the prize money this season to R3,5-million, give or take a few cents.
Manning Rangers, winners of the inaugural national championship, collected R500 000 and if the Durban club repeat the feat come May they can look forward to a cheque of about R550 000.
Final details of how the lolly will be distributed among the 18 clubs are not expected before a meeting of the Premier Soccer League (PSL) board of governors later this month.
South African Breweries raised the stakes in appreciation of what sports sponsorship manager Norman Minnaar called the “extremely good” administration of the league.
That tribute to chief executive officer Trevor Phillips, Ierfaan Bux, Andrew Dipela, David Thidiela, Bafana Dlamini, Errol Sweeney, Dan Leboa, Buti Mosesi and many unseen heroes and heroines is fully deserved.
Under the firm and inspirational leadership of former English pharmaceutical company executive Phillips, the league has reached a new level of competency in South African soccer officialdom.
At the same function where Minnaar lavished praise on the PSL, he said one major challenge lay ahead for an organisation that operates from first-floor offices in the leafy Johannesburg suburb of Parktown. “We have got to woo spectators back to Premiership grounds,” the man from the breweries said, “and with the commitment the league has shown so far, I am sure we can achieve that.”
Judged by the size of crowds last weekend, it looks like a challenge that the immaculately groomed, fiftysomething Phillips may have to pass on to his successor when he resigns in mid-year.
While a crowd of about 25 000 would have most Premiership treasurers reaching for tranquillisers, there could be no hiding the disappointment that Sundowns and Orlando Pirates failed to draw more fans to Odi Stadium last Sunday.
Was it the oppressive heat? Was it the live television coverage? Was it empty pockets after the festive season? Was it the need to put schooling costs first? Was it a fear that The Ghost might erupt?
The continuing failure of clubs to provide official attendances makes accurate comparisons impossible, but I would suggest that the fixture last year attracted at least 10 000 more fans.
An even bigger blow to the PSL came the previous evening at Johannesburg Stadium where Saturday Night Fever assumed a new meaning with a lunatic fringe of Chiefs fans venting their misplaced anger on coach Paul Dolezar. The Yugoslav coach may have brought the Amakhosi their first trophy in four years, but he had to dodge a variety of missiles when Chiefs trudged off the field following a surprise 4-2 loss to resurgent Cape Town Spurs.
It is not a match wearers of black and gold will remember with any fondness. My abiding memory was the seemingly endless time Ian Gorowa of Spurs held the ball inside the box before crossing for David Modise to hammer in the final nail.
Spurs scored some excellent goals on the break, notably the second from discarded Bafana Bafana striker Shaun Bartlett, but Chiefs contributed handsomely to their downfall through hesitant defending.
Some people hardly need an excuse for causing trouble and when the missiles failed to flatten Dolezar, about 1 500 alleged supporters camped menacingly outside the stadium.. It took almost an hour before police and security officials permitted Dolezar to leave. The incident received considerable media attention and one wonders how many more genuine fans will now retire to the couch.
Why should people spend R10 on admission and at least as much on transport to risk life and limb at the hands of people who would probably be lucky to score zero in a soccer quiz.
The 15 000 crowd was less than half that which watched the corresponding fixture last season and no matter how many times PSL spin doctor Dipela tells radio audiences that crowds are rising, the evidence suggests otherwise.
Reasons for the curse of intolerance within our land are well documented and stretch far beyond the boundaries of soccer. Phillips is no stranger to hooliganism as it cast a deep shadow over English football in the 1980s.
At a time when his marketing skills are desperately needed to sell the game to a retreating public, he must surely adjust his sights to assuring that those who still prefer their action live can do so in peace.