We have witnessed the two institutions singing from different hymn books on the possible resumption of professional football since news broke that the powers that be were considering all possible options before deciding on the way forward. This after the league was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in March, with eight rounds of fixtures still to play. There has been a lot of ground covered since then, in an attempt to resume the season rather than nullifying it or ending it as things stand. What made a lot more sense and got everyone convinced was that the season should be decided on the field of play, which makes sense for all involved. However, we've witnessed a lot of back-and-forth from the two institutions with SAFA holding all the power as the mother body that deals directly with the world football rulers based in Zurich, Switzerland, namely FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association), and therefore acting as custodians of South African football.
On the other hand, you have the Absa Premiership, which is an affiliate member of SAFA that administers professional football in the country. There's a fine line between the operations of the two, as they are similar but different in more ways than one. They both run football at different levels and definitely need one another. While SAFA have done a lot for our football, putting our national teams in order and seeing more and more female players securing big overseas contracts, putting more emphasis on women's football and empowerment and more and more national teams participating at the highest level of international football, there's still a lot to be done. However, the biggest achievement for me has to be SAFA's change of mindset when it comes to local talent. For the first time in years, one feels a lot more proud and happy to see more and more of our legends getting recognised and playing important roles in our national teams. Not a single national team is coached by a foreigner and these locals earned their stripes before they were entrusted with such a great responsibility. We now have Serame Letsoaka and Thabo Senong, among others, flying the South African flag on the continent, having cut their teeth at SAFA. While there are some wins, there are obviously areas of growth that need to be taken into consideration.
SAFA can't claim to have done all of the above without the PSL's contribution. Without the PSL, there's very little SAFA can do and vice versa, to a certain extent. It is the PSL that has opened the doors for local clubs to attract big sponsors, create opportunities for local players and coaches alike, to attract overseas interest, and put South African football on the map. The standard of our game has improved immensely, thanks to the League and SAFA's teams benefit a lot from the League's affiliates and that's exactly why these two institutions should always operate in sync. They both have a significant role to play, especially at times like these, where strong leadership is necessary. People need hope, people need inspiration, people need encouragement, people need direction, people need happiness, people need comfort, people are desperate, people are anxious and people are scared. Football is one sport that can provide a lot of the abovementioned and the sooner we have the Beautiful Game back, the sooner the depression levels will drop. Football is our happy escape and whenever the two bodies don't see eye-to-eye, they must understand the depth of the impact their actions have on the general public that is hungry for strong and considerate leadership. This is no time for people to flex their muscles or play political games. There's so much at stake here and we need to put our differences aside, for the sake of our people and the county at large.
When the PSL announced the weekend of July 18th as the date set for the resumption of the season, the announcement brought a lot of excitement. We just couldn't wait, but the disappointment that befell us when it was announced that the mother body was standing in an opposite corner in the ring, was immeasurable. You'd think the announcement would have been a joint-statement with both parties having crossed the t's and dotted the i's – alas, that wasn't the case. Now the new reason for SAFA's disapproval is the readiness, or lack thereof, of match officials. Where has the SAFA's head of referees been all along? Was the Referees' department not aware that the League and SAFA were working on getting the season back on track for more than two months now? Again, if the referees were not ready and fit to restart on July 18th, who in their right minds think they will be ready for action come August 1st? When the teams resumed full training, what were the referees doing? I smell a rat here because there's no way the referees were sitting on their laurels throughout the lockdown and even when there was a press conference after another addressing the possible return to action! I think someone is out to sabotage someone here instead of keeping the eye on the ball.
We need SAFA and PSL to get their act together and lead. The impact this Coronavirus has had on the country is devastating as it is, a little bit of relief will come in handy and the two bodies have what it takes to provide just that. I pray that sanity prevails and we see unity between the two bodies so that they can continue to play their important roles in football and beyond, as I quote a verse from Anglican Church of Southern Africa, hymn 139: "Iziphatha-mandla, ziphe ubulumko. Zilawule kakuhle. Zizicaka zakho. Yolul' isandla samandla, sikelel' izwe lo bawo." (Give the lawmakers wisdom. So that they rule well. They are your servants. Stretch your powerful hand and bless our forefather's country).
