Chronicle Editor
Lovemore Dube
WHILE others have nothing to show off for the many years of service in football, Saneliso Sibanda is a proud owner of 27 head of cattle, being proceeds from her refereeing career.
She believes she has done enough and it is time for her to inspire other women and even men. But in her retirement, she can look back and say she achieved something from the game she took to 20 years ago.
“I went into football as a keep fit gig, I never knew referees were paid and was pleasantly surprised in my first match which involved juniors when a colleague said I should go and collect money. I asked him why and he said it was ours. I heard had referees being accused of accepting bribes and I feared that it was just that.
“I collected it and we shared but deep down in me I feared and asked other colleagues who assured me that it was the practice for referees to be paid for their services,” said Sibanda who is calling it quits this week at the age of 47.
As a full-time teacher she said she tried to live her life without much dependency on the earnings from the game because in the first place, she did not expect to be paid. She said with her earnings from the game she saved money to buy cattle and through natural forces of growth and attrition she has a herd of 27 all proceeds from her officiating.
“I channelled all I got from refereeing into cattle. That is why they all have names, I had FC Platinum, they are actually two of them, BF, Ascot and Hwange. Every time I went to a game I would save the money and use it to buy cattle when it was enough to do so. Platinum was very productive, it gave me a set of twins and its offspring bore another set of twins. In no time the herd had grown. It could be a larger herd had I not sold some 11 last year to buy myself a decent car,” said Sibanda.
She was born sixth with five boys who are older than her and after her. She grew up playing football with them and at times would officiate in their matches and with that the football bug stuck to her.
She went to Matshetsheni Primary School and proceeded to Nkazhe Secondary School all in Gwanda District, Matabeleland South Province where one of her teachers was Dalubuhle Bhebhe.
Bhebhe is a development coach based in Bulawayo who once was with Chicken Inn, Bulawayo Chiefs and Bulawayo City.
Bhebhe described her as a brilliant all-round pupil who excelled in academics as much as she did on the sporting field.
“She was a very good student who was good all round and liked sport. I am happy that she followed her passion and did us proud,” said Bhebhe on Friday.
Sibanda started her refereeing in 2003 when she attended a beginners course and got her first taste of action and referees money in 2004.
In 2007 she was made a Class One referee and got into the Zifa Panel to officiate PSL matches as an assistant.
Before officiating in the PSL, Sibanda said she would save whatever she got from Division One matches and buy cattle after several months of putting money aside.
She recalls one international match between FC Platinum and a Zambian side where they were paid US$300 each and with that money she bought a cow and named it Platinum, thereafter she made it a point that she named her individual members of the herd by venues that she would have earned money at for her investment in animals.
“I never went into it for money so I survived on my teacher’s salary,” said Sibanda who was on the Fifa panel for two years 2009 and 2010.
Sibanda, a holder of a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Physical Education and Sport from Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) teaches at Baines Junior School in Bulawayo. She was removed from the list in what she said came as a surprise.
“Someone here in Bulawayo lied that I was in South Africa and I was left out of the course and removed from the panel. In 2014 there were overtures for me to return but I was steadfast and opted to stay where I was with local football. I am happy to have achieved whatever I did. Football lifted me and my younger sister is among Premier Soccer League female referees. Her name is Sibonokuhle Sibanda,” said Sibanda.
She said she was stepping down happy with her achievements where she was never manhandled by both fans and teams.
Sibanda said what made her survive in a male-dominated field was the fact that she was quick to set the ground rules that they were at work and the guys needed not to cross the line.
As for fans she said they did use vulgar language and even proposed love to her while she was running along the lines during matches.
Online Reporter