A family night out with 6,000 friends. Maritzburg United vs Amazulu: KwaZulu-Natal derby in the round of 32 of the Nedbank Cup, South Africa’s FA Cup. At kickoff, deafening kwaito music gives way to a cacophony of vuvuzelas. Not exactly kid friendly, but there it is. The relaxed mood of this Saturday night crowd, a pleasant mix of men, women and children of all backgrounds, makes up for the dreadful football on display.
The home side is slightly more enterprising in the second half, but deep into injury time the visitors’ Brad Ritson scores a counter-attack winner. Cruel. Final.
As we, the deflated masses, leave the friendly confines of Harry Gwala Stadium, I found myself wondering — again — why PSL teams played such awful soccer on a regular basis. Then I thought of the wisdom shared by Thabo Dladla, director of Izichwe Youth Football (where my daughter plays), in his column this week:
‘The idea of playing and keeping the ball longer does not exist . . . [with] less than 100 completed passes in most PSL matches’ Dladla writes, ‘I doubt if Lionel Messi would have played under most South African coaches. [In the apartheid era] football played a huge role in entertaining people. It was important to win in style. Both players and fans had a lot of fun during a game. These days one sees more creativity in the grandstands than on the field’. And as much as I viscerally detest the vuvuzela’s sonic pollution, it is the truth.
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5 replies on “Vuvuzela 1 PSL 0”
True, the whole idea of cold tactical football, defined by the ‘earth scorch’ technique, disguised under the name counter-attack football is anathema to the realization of the true meaning of football as a sport. Gradually, football is taking on war tactics! I once came across some chapter in a sociology textbook on the morality of Argentine football and couldnt agree more with the author…the more scientific and pragmatic football becomes, the less of a sport it becomes.
True, the whole idea of cold tactical football, defined by the ‘earth scorch’ technique, disguised under the name counter-attack football is anathema to the realization of the true meaning of football as a sport. …the more scientific and pragmatic football becomes, the less of a sport it becomes.
Soon after I started going to PSL games, I realised that the entertainment was in the stands and not on the pitch. No wonder that so many sing, dance, blow the vuvuzela and parade around in some crazy attire. The quality on the pitch is quite often dire, although there are still some occasional gems; Wits v Thanda Royal Zulu in 08/09 was one such fixture when Wits passed the ball to feet reminiscent of Brazil. With the large amount of prize money on offer in the PSL, I find it unsurprising that tactics of attrition dominate the game.
I’ve been told so many times that South African players in the 70s and 80s could have been world beaters given the chance. If that was the case, the state of the game today is depressing (and I watch a lot of English non-league football).
Barcelona is proof that millionaires don’t necessarily have to play dire football. If you’re rich, you have less to worry about, no? Enjoy yourself and share the joy with the people . . .
http://africasacountry.com/2010/07/11/the-vuvuzela/