A MEDAL AT LAST

Well done Khotso you have done us proud. Mokoena jumped 8.24 (his personal best) in the men's long jump finals on Monday to claim the first medal for the South African team in Beijing..

The boy has proven what he is capable of and needs to be given more opportunity to shine..VIVA Khotso VIVA...

Bolt of fire...

I personally had my money on Asafa Powell and I have been highly criticised for this. I thought he had it in the bag but the problem is that I had not been monitoring Usain Bolt's progress in the qualifying rounds....and wow was I surprised like Fabian McCarthy was when Kaizer Chiefs did not renew his contract..!

But my point is this: "Could this guy had run a record below 9.69 had he not stop to celebrate when he did.."? He started celebrating before he could cross the finish line even though he was way ahead of his competitors"....
Have your say...

Hier kom die BOKKE...

It might be a cliche: "We need to transform SA and coach young aspiring Rugby players to be part of the springboks in the future"...Well the Springboks and the Pumas (Argentine counterparts) did just that when they took part in a tranformation set up in Dobsonville Soweto..

Young one from ages of 10-18 where also screaming "BEAST BEAST"...."Jongi, you play for the Cheetahs right?I want to play like you when I grow up"....you should have seen the excitment on their faces and how they absolutely love Rugby...Please do not deny them of this opportunity South Africa...

The Springbok coach had this to say: "We said we want to be the people's team. My teachers and coaches never knew what they had in me, and maybe one day these kids can show the same (potential)...if we can change some of these kids lives then we are glad to do that".

As you can see...I was there to capture the moments and snuck a picture with the Beast and Jongi (without looking like a groupie..coz trust me I'm not...I'm just avarage...hahaha)

Where will he end up?

It is one of the biggest talking points in the soccer fraternity at the monment...Where is the 28year-old Brazilian star going to play next season? Ronaldhino fell out of favour with Mr. Raijkaard last season at Barcelona and is set to be showing his skills elsewhere this coming season.

But what is more confusing is that, the new coach has declared that the star midfilder is not in his plans but the club is still reluctant to sell him to bidding teams like Manchester City and AC Milan. Futher more, he has been selected in the Brazilian squad to play in Beijing 2008 as one of the older players but the club still refuses to let him go there...!! Is there sometype of conspiracy against the star?

Will I be one of these?

I'm moving to the sports sections of The Times as of Monday 14th July..and day and night I keep thinking to myself..."Will I be like one of these"? Now these men have built a name for themselves in the sports (soccer) fraternity and they are well respected for their knowledge of the business...

I'm talking about Mninawa Ntloko and Bareng-Batho Kortjaas. Ntloko wrote for The Times but was later recruited back by Business Day and BBK is currently with the Sunday Times and does the Metro FM sports show...Clearly these men have built a name for themselves, no doubt about that. I'm a bit nervous and excited at the same time...Is passion enough for this or I need more than just passion,determination and hard-work?

Whatch this space...I resume my duties on the 14th July.!

Bittersweet...as Man U clinch double!

Man U fans across the globe have every right to celebrate the victory of their team against Chelsea in the Champions league clash last night. However, It will go down as a bittersweet moment for the Man U fans as they ran to celebrate when Van der Sar (goalkeeper) made a save to deny Chelsea a small chance in the penalties.

I still respect John Terry and understand how he must be filling now...I mean the guy slipped - he did not "miss" the penalty because it was going in guranteed had he not slipped. Can you imagine the pain in his heart...He would have been the first Chelsea captain to lift the trophy (Champions League) but I guess the nerves got to him. Cezch (chelsea goalkeeper) had already played his part by saving Ronaldo's spot kick..and it was all up to our leader and he "Failed" us..

I'm not angry at all but rather upset that Man U can still pop the champagne after winning like that.

Many should agree with me when I say it was a game of two halfs. Man U totally dominated the first and Chelsea the second - but the 2nd half is always what matters the most. Chelsea hit the post twice in that game..!! I still say OH HAIL THE BLUES..last night's game makes me want to go out and actually buy a Chelsea shirt...!! Congratulations Manchester City...oops sorry i ment Manchester United...!

PS: Ronaldo is still the best player in the world..!!

The Times has compiled a caption of last night's action

Farewell Mr. Parreira..!

I'm sure alot of us have been asking ourselves "Where is our soccer headed"?This, after our national coach Mr. Parreira left us to go home as his wife Leila is sick and he needs to be with her.

Trust me I'm a sensitive guy who understands family and heart issues..but im just wondering, If The Coach earned 1.8m a month..why couldn't he bring his whole family here and live comfortably while still implementing his plans for 2010?

He has had a heart to heart interview with the Sunday Times telling them why he is leaving SA for Brazil and how he might come back to be the Technical adviser of Bafana Bafana..He has also left us in the "capable" hands of Joel Santan..Joel who?Yeah..i know..!!I personally think, Jomo Sono would have been our best bet because he know the culture and the players have respect for him..then again what do i know..Im a Journalist not a soccer coach..!

SA athletes at their best...

South Africa claimed a gold and a silver medal at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Valencia, Spain at the weekend, thanks to long jump ace Khotso Mokoena and 800 metres star Mbulaeni Mulaudzi. Our athletes are really doing us proud...They also recieved small incentives yesterday when they got back from the World Indoor Championship. Khotso got R30,000 while Mulaudzi got R20,000. Well done boys..! [check out the pics]

Apology accepted!!

Orlando Pirates chairman, Irvin Khoza, has apologized for his use of the "K" word at a press conference 2weeks ago. His words: "Stop thinking like a kaffir because you are contriving and misleading about something that is not there" were directed at a black journalist. He was given a week to apologize by the HRC (Human Rights Commission). Khoza has done exactly that by saying that the recent racist video in the UFS has promted him to apologize. He said:"I humbly submit to all South Africans that at no stage did I intend to open the wounds and hurt our people who suffered from racism"...Well, Mr. Khoza, you made the right choice by apologizing in good time and by being the bigger person on this one. South Africans hope that it does not happen again because a man in of your statue can not be saying such demeaning things..TO A JOURNALIST NOGAL?

Reports say that this was Khoza's second apology for his use of the word and he humbled himself to repeat the apology..OK Mr. Khoza, you almost scored an own goal on this one but you redeemed yourself well..!

The balance in Mzantsi

Our soccer needs to find Balance..It is not good for our soccer to hire and fire coaches left right and centre! Ok, maybe Gordon Igesund had to go because there was no consistency in his perfomance as a coach and Mamelodi Sundows are now lying on the 13th spot in the league. This is even though they are considered to be a TOP TEAM..Kaizer Chiefs is down there with them (11th spot), and this can not be good for our soccer especially since the world cup is coming here in 2010..

All I am saying is that we need to find a balance somehow. Asern Wenger and Sir Alex Furgeson have been at Man U and Arsenal respectively for a long time. They did not always win (both of them went for about 4years without wining anything ) but stayed on in their teams..A call for Mzantsi to find a balance and sustain it..!

Black Weekend for Giants indeed!!

Today's newspaper headlines (Sowetan) read "Black Weekend for Giants"...this is after Kaizer Chiefs, Mamelodi Sundows and Orlando Pirates lost this weekend. Gone are the days when these soccer giants used to dominate the SA soccer fraternity. Kaizer Chiefs was not totally outplayed though, missed chances is what cost them the game against Supersport United. Once again I am calling for the retirement of Shaun Bartlett..

I was happy to see Jonathan Quartey back in the line and for the first time in a long while the Kaizer Chiefs defence had some form of shape!!Etrugal's job is now on the line after this weekend's defeat and the same goes for Gordon Igesund (actually he has been fired, see picture above). Owen da Gama on the other hand is safe because Pirates has been doing well with Mushangazike banging in those goals..to my surprise he has been appointed Captain of the team (or maybe that is just to boost his confidence)..then again da Gama had nothing to do with him being bought..So the question is "Did Irvin Khoza promise Mushangazike that he would be Captain if he signed?"...Anyway soccer was the Hero this weekend..Chelsea also tasted defeat against Tottenham in the Carling Cup final yesterday...Man U fans must be estatic after they also thrashed New Castle 5-1..Wow our soccer is really improving (in the world that is, not Mzantsi..)

The Flag: A disgrace to our TRANSFORMATION..!

The Sowetan (11th Feb 2008) showed a picture of the old S.A flag that was paraded in Ghana during the Africa Cup of nations with a Benni McCarthy (who was not even in the squad) poster. How can this be?Haven't we been over this before, I thought S.A was transformed?First Polokwane, then Eskom and load-shedding- now its the S.A flag!Was it done on purpose or was it a pure mistake by the Ghana and S.A officicials alike? BBK (top soccer journalist in SA) said that the country's old flag "Leaves me cold"...It leaves me cold too, not because i hate it but because we are a transformed/transforming nation that deserves to live with the changes we have made to make our country a better place, not the kind of dictatorship apartheid embodied!To me it says that the SAFA big shots were satisfied with the old flag hanging up there for three weeks as our representation for being in Ghana..What did we go to Ghana for?

As if the first round exit in the Nations Cup was not enough...SAFA members have chosen to keep quite about the flag we waved about in Ghana. The boys did OK compared to when they left the tournament without scoring a goal! I think though, that this time around, S.A scored an own goal with the whole old flag thing..! I have to agree with BBK :"The only plausible explanation the duo (Raymond Hack and Molefi Oliphant) could give the nation is that they were walking around Ghana with thier eyes closed while enjoying whatever they went to Ghana for"...this whole situation leaves me feeling like i do not have any clothes on..Almost like my own country has stripped me naked!