thoughts on botswana football

The Botswana Football Association Has Totally Failed Amateur Football

May07
2012 Leave a Comment Written by segankure

If the oft-used reference of ‘mother-body’ is to be taken literally about the BFA, then the  Regional structures are quite simply the ‘motherless children’ of Botswana football, the after-thought.

To illustrate, consider the so-called ‘Constituency League’ uproar: the BFA was completely caught with their pants down. So unprepared that they resorted to underhand tactics that ultimately threatened to undermine their own existence. By crying all the way to FIFA about ‘Government interference’ in football, the BFA inadvertently justified Government’s position: they cannot be trusted. READ MORE »

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SIGN THIS E-PETITION TO THE BOTSWANA GOVERNMENT

May07
2012 3 Comments Written by segankure

Posted in Uncategorized

Maximal Training: Football specificity for optimal performance

Apr23
2012 2 Comments Written by segankure

This article is of particular interest to coaches, and those with an interest in player development at various levels. It discusses the concept of Maximal Training © of footballers, as practised by Ted Dumitru and many other coaches across the world, and why it is important in the Botswana context. This is the first in a series of articles that will analyse in greater detail the principles of this simple, yet potentially revolutionary training model of player development. Dumitru’s own blog is at maximalfootball.com

It is a common sight at many a training ground: players waiting in line, taking turns to run onto a stationary or gently rolling ball and strike it, hopefully into the net, but mostly anywhere else but on goal. ‘This is how you kick a ball!’, the coach would go on to demonstrate, or ‘keep it on target!’ he would shout in exasperation. This is usually a response to the inability of the team to convert clear goalscoring chances in a previous match, often resulting in a defeat. The results are varied: for example, a player who has been hitting the target with most of his shots would suddenly start shooting wide, or vice-versa. After 30 minutes or so, the coach decides he is getting nowhere with this exercise, and so moves on to something else, leaving ‘target practice’ for another day; until the next match that is, when the team miss lots of chances again. In any case, the best ‘shooters’ in training are not necessarily the best goalscorers during the match. Why is this? READ MORE »

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Money Issues in Regional Football & the Politics of Empty Promises

Apr16
2012 2 Comments Written by segankure

It is generally accepted wisdom within football circles that it takes money to run the game, and that without money our football ‘will not go anywhere’, as we say. And it’s true. It is also true that the role of finance in football is open to interpretation, and therein lies the problem.

Never mind the new dawn of multi-million Pula sponsorships in the Premier League, most clubs all the way down to the basement of the Regional leagues owe their daily existence to one or a few people who, out of love, but usually also out of speculation, dip into their own pocket to ensure that the team honours its obligations. Generally, the idea is that the club will grow to the point where all that outlay will be recovered multiple-fold, or the most talented players will graduate to loftier levels and be sold for a fortune or two.

Locally, there is very little scope for the idea of selling players being a lucrative if profitable enterprise, especially for a club outside the Premier League. Firstly, the Botswana FA stipulates transfer fees for all the local leagues, except where a player is a professional (i.e. with an employment contract), where teams are  then able to negotiate the perceived value of the player. With the advent of professional football in the country, and transfer fees reportedly already reaching the P100 000 mark, it is perhaps time to review the structure that still allows a Premier League side to pay P3000 for a player in the lower divisions. READ MORE »

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On The Need For Coaches With A Passion For Player Development

Apr05
2012 1 Comment Written by segankure

The following article has been reproduced with the kind permission of its author Clint Roper, editor of South African weekly Soccer Laduma. Originally titled Where Are The Mourinhos, Wengers And Fergusons Of The PSL?, he addresses the need for player development-oriented coaches who have a long-term view and are keen on establishing a club’s football identity, as opposed to travelling-merchant rent-a-trophy guns for hire who do not leave a legacy as they hop from club to club. Enjoy, but more importantly, get it. Get it?

Something really struck home while talking to Augusto Palacios, the caretaker coach of Orlando Pirates. The man lives, breathes and eats football. Often when you read interviews from Barca, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Manchester United players past and present, they will make reference to the fact that guys like Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger and Alex Ferguson are football besotted –  that they study the game endlessly. That when they aren’t coaching, they are doing something to improve their understanding of the game. That they are constantly working on ways to improve their players and their club.

Years ago, our own Benni McCarthy told me that when he played for Mourinho at Porto, Mourinho would come to him with a CD after a game which he had asked his technical team to compile of only Benni’s footage so that Benni could study it and learn from it. I have yet to hear any PSL player tell Soccer-Laduma a similar story. READ MORE »

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Post-Match Interviews and Random Tactics

Mar26
2012 Leave a Comment Written by segankure

This past weekend I watched Gaborone United play Ecco City Greens on Botswana TV, a very important match for both teams: GU went in with ambitions of getting their title hopes back on track after 2 particularly damaging consecutive defeats to direct rivals Rollers  and Centre Chiefs, while Ecco are starting a new era after deciding against renewing their contract with their coach. The match itself was hugely entertaining, if only for the attacking brilliance of Ecco City. The 2 teams’ approach to the match were as contrasting as were the post-game interviews.

Take the Ecco City caretaker Coach Atshele Molapi’s summation:

We knew that GU play through Nato and Sandaka, so I assigned players to make sure that they did not start any moves through Nato.

This is exactly what happened during the match; the GU central midfield was played out of the match. To add to what his coach alluded to above Tendai Nyumasi, voted the beMobile Man-of-the-match, had this to say:

Our coach told us that the GU central midfielders are slow in marking, and that we should play the ball quicker (in the final third) READ MORE »

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Football Fitness Another Way: Raymond Verheijen

Mar20
2012 Leave a Comment Written by segankure

The following article and interview is reproduced from footyplace.com, featuring renowned Dutch coach Raymond Verheijen. An interesting read.

Raymond Verheijen stresses the importance of using the right language as a fitness coach and criticises the over-reliance on sports science in an exclusive interview with Footyplace.

As a youth player, Raymond Verheijen was part of the famous Dutch Academy structure until a knee injury forced him to retire at the age of just 17. Rather than let it ruin him, Verheijen trained to become a coach whilst also studying Exercise Physiology and Sport Psychology at the Vrije University Amsterdam. He completed his Masters Degrees in 1995 and also studied at the Liverpool John Moores University between 1993 and 1995.

In 1995 Verheijen developed his university thesis into the book ‘Conditioning for Soccer’ which became the coach education book of the Dutch FA (KNVB) in 1997. Verheijen became a pro-licence instructor at the Dutch FA in 1998. His first course as instructor was with coaches Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, Ronald Koeman and Johan Neeskens. READ MORE »

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AFCON 2012 – The Journey

Mar06
2012 Leave a Comment Written by segankure

Botswana’s AFCON debut is one for the history books, as is the record 6-1 reversal against Guinea in the second match, equalling a 40-year tournament record goal margin.

A Coach’s Nightmare

After a courageous first match against overwhelming favourites Ghana, losing to a sloppily-conceded fumbled shot from a set-piece, there was general belief that the fear factor and inevitable stage fright had been overcome, and the shackles would be off against upcoming opponents Guinea, and later Mali. In football, and especially in Africa, everything is never as it seems, and where many were predicting the Zebras to consolidate, there was disarray behind the scenes. READ MORE »

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The Tshosane Template, and why it is the right way to go

Jan12
2012 Leave a Comment Written by segankure

Stanley Tshosane’s Zebras (22*) have qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations 2012 edition, easily Botswana’s finest moment ever in international football, posting many firsts along the way yet striking for its simplicity, culminating in their rightful recognition as CAF African Team of the Year 2011. Also up for nomination were Tshosane (Coach of the Year) and his striker Jerome Ramatlhakwane (Player of the Year) who, though clubless, scored an incredible 5 goals along the way.

Many opposing sides, coaches and commentators have failed to grasp the simple efficiency of the ‘template’ upon which this success was based, and have seen the Zebras punch above their weight, much against all predictions of bust. There is a sizeable ‘Yes, but..’ camp, who while acknowledging the bottom line, demand a more attacking flair from the team, some begrudging the previously unfancied Tshosane of his achievement, and others due to new-found delusions of grandeur. And then of course, there is reality. READ MORE »

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Tshosane Outburst: Is The Tail Finally Wagging The Dog At The BFA?

Oct10
2011 Leave a Comment Written by segankure

The mini-exchange between National Team coach Stan Tshosane and Botswana Football Association’s David Fani last week raises some interesting questions about the internal rumblings at Lekidi Centre. Seemingly centred around the issue of friendly matches for the Zebras, one cannot help but feel that there is a far more significant issue at the bottom of it all: control.

Ask any football coach what they crave the most in a contest, and they will tell you control of the match. With or without the ball, you want to control the tempo, the width, the depth, the territory. Except at issue here is not control of a match, but of a people’s emotions and affections: the supporters, that sacred constituency. READ MORE »

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