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Zimpapers Sports Hub
MAMELODI Sundowns and Bafana Bafana legend Mathew Booth has experienced football at the highest level both in Africa and in the tougher European leagues having spent half a dozen seasons in the Russian top-flight.
A towering defender who stood 1,98m tall in heart of the Bafana Bafana defence has remained involved with the game, largely in an ambassadorial role for the sport.
During the on-going Vision View TV Easter Cup of Champions Under-17 tournament in Kyalami, South Africa, Booth was one of the former players tasked by the organisers to talk to the teenage boys competing for honours and Legends Football Academy of Zimbabwe, is one such participating teams, he was assigned to.
And in his address the former Sundowns defender who also played for FC Rostov and Krylia Sovetov in Russia, warned the teenagers against falling into the trap of drug and substance abuse, which has wrecked the careers of many athletes.
“I have been asked by the organisers to have a brief chat with you about being a professional footballer and what it takes,” Booth told the players.
“Being a professional footballer has many advantages, you get to travel a lot, meet great people, play for top teams and gives you the opportunity to lay for your country, which is probably the best thing that can happen to any player, playing for your badge.
“Your career is very thin, very short period from the moment you sign your first professional career you must start preparing for the end, so your education comes before football, education is very important. Because your career as a professional is very short. I had a career as a professional for 18 years, I retired at the age of 36.
“So, when you retire what do you do? Do as best as you can in school, have something in your pocket whether it is at a college, whether it is a coaching licence, prepare for what you are going to do after playing . . . that is very important,” Booth said.
“Seventy-five percent of European and South African professionals, five years after retirement become bankrupt, divorced, or they become drug and alcohol dependent.
“So, you must change that statistic, change that number. Clever players off the field are clever players on the field and I see that when I watch Mamelodi Sundowns or Orlando Pirates, you can see the intelligence on the field and you can see the way the conduct themselves off the field. What they do off the field, they bring onto the field and vice-versa.
“What differentiates players is discipline, taking instructions from coaches and carrying the instructions, which is a skills set, perseverance instead of giving up if the coach doesn’t pick you keep fighting and such things will get you to the top but when you become successful you have to prepare for your time in retirement”.
Legends coach Farai Dhliwayo welcomed Booth’s address to the players and also spoke about how the tournament had given his teenage boys some invaluable lessons given the high-profile opposition they are having to contend with during the Easter tourney.
“In our first match against Highlands Park the boys showed some trepidation. This is to be expected from young players gaining experience . . . we took the lead through the consistent performance of team captain, 15-year-old winger Tatenda Maulidi, who rounded the keeper and slotted into the net from a tight angle,” Dhliwayo said.
“Unfortunately, we had what we felt was a soft penalty called against us for a ball to hand incident which led to an equaliser and then conceded a goal late in the game.
“The game as all the games in the tournament was played at a high level”
“He expressed satisfaction with the improved showing and confidence from his charges who seem to be growing with each game in the tournament.
“Our second match was against last year’s finalists Panorama. I was extremely happy with the performance of the young legends in this match,” Dhliwayo said.
“Small margins were the difference in the final scoreline with Panorama winning 1-0 with a final minute penalty for another soft handball call.
“A few minutes earlier the speed of Maulidi saw him breakaway before being hacked down in the opponents’ box leading to a penalty for Legends.
“The penalty was saved and the momentum switched to the opponents.
“There were good performances from Tatenda Maulidi, Ashley Chihumba, Denzel Chakaza and goalkeeper Eden”.
Dhliwayo also underscored the significance of this kind of annual tournament, especially for development institutions in Zimbabwe where high-level youth competitions are a rarity.
“The importance of providing the young legends cadets with enriching experiences and high-level competitive matches cannot be measured.”
While Legends came a cropper against last year’s runners-up Panorama, the highlight of Day 2 fixtures was no doubt the showdown between Kaizer Chiefs and Mamelodi Sundowns, which also attracted a sizeable crowd and saw the former emerging 3-1 winners from a bruising battle.
Online Reporter