The passing of former Kaizer Chiefs, Mamelodi Sundowns, Orlando Pirates and Bafana Bafana coach, Ted Dumitru, has robbed South African football of one of the brightest minds and most passionate students of our Beautiful Game.
When a call came through from one of our Siyagobhoza sources with heart-breaking news, a meeting which was being held at our offices was abruptly adjourned, as shock and disbelief set in. We immediately made phone calls to a number of people close to the 76-year-old Romanian in an attempt to verify the information.
Jumping back in time, a little over 24 hours before we received news of Ted's collapse, I had received a call from Augusto Palacios, who wanted to publish in last week's edition of the South African Football Coaches Association's seminar, which was to be held on Thursday. Pirates' Youth Development Chief gave us the necessary information about the seminar and mentioned the fact that Dumitru was one of the main people involved in the seminar.
When no one close to Ted picked up their phones, we called a SAFA official, who confirmed that Master Ted had collapsed at a shopping mall due to a heart-attack and was in a critical condition. We all breathed a huge sigh of relief and thanked God that Ted was alive and that he would make a speedy recovery. Before we could even proceed with the meeting, one of the people close to Ted who we had tried to contact earlier returned my call to confirm that someone from SAFA was on their way to inform the SAFCA's seminar that Ted had in fact passed away. The rest is now history.
Theodore Dumitru was full of life. He was passionate about football and, just like any typical South African football supporter, didn't accept any mediocrity when it came to how the game was played. It didn't matter if you won the league title - if you played 'ugly' football your achievement would be rendered meaningless by the master tactician. He was one of few foreign coaches who truly understood and embraced South African players and their unique talent, at times more so than most local coaches. That's why it was so easy for football supporters to adopt him as one of their own, because he didn't just talk about African football and how it should be embraced, but walked the walk as well.
Ted was one opinionated student of the game who stood up for what he believed, regardless of what the outside world thought. A simple phone call for a brief comment would see you on the phone with Ted for far longer than expected, as he would try to articulate his thinking completely. No matter how busy he was, Ted always had time to talk football. He always made his feelings known, however his forthrightness didn't make him popular with certain individuals at times. Ted was never one to mince his words and called a spade just that – a spade!
Public opinion never deterred him and he always held the belief that the 2006 Egypt AFCON disaster was a missed opportunity, as he was on a mission to freshen up the national team and change the mindset and direction of our football at the time. Anyone who dared to remind Ted of the fact that Bafana left Egypt without scoring a single goal, let alone collecting a point, would simply be dismissed as short-sighted by him. The fact that Ted's team emerged as the best coached team at the tournament gives credence to Dumitru's vision and plan.
Although he may be gone, young coaches like Dan Malesela, Zipho Dlangalala and many others will carry the legacy left by Dumitru as they read from the same Maximal Training manual. So long, Master Ted, so long!
Moving on, Khama Billiat made a clean sweep at the PSL Awards ceremony held at Emperor's Palace on Monday night. It was a well-organised affair that pulled the curtain on yet another successful season. It was more like the Mamelodi Sundowns PSL awards ceremony, as the Chloorkop-based side duly dominated proceedings. Zimbabwean international Khama Billiat was the biggest winner on the night and walked away with the Players' Player of the Season, Midfielder of the Season, as well as the Footballer of the Season awards. Incidentally he was voted as the Soccer Laduma Readers and Journalists' Player of the Season as well. Pitso Mosimane was also rewarded for his sterling job this season, as he not only won the Telkom Knockout and league titles, but also dominated the Coach of the Month awards.
An emotional moment was when the mother of the late Ajax Cape Town utility player, Cecil Lolo, collected his MTN8 Last Man Standing award. I'm sure the love and appreciation shown by South Africa will go a long way to strengthen Lolo's family.
As for PSL debutants Bakgaga, we welcome you to the elite league and can hardly wait to see what you have in store for us! While you've proven to be no pushovers in your recent encounters with PSL sides, we hope you will be able to continue to do so on a weekly basis and make the masses of Limpopo fans proud. To Coach Kgoloko Thobejane and Baroka's management, it is now time to prepare for your maiden season in the PSL, so may it go well. Always retain your team's identity and style of play, as it is what makes you who you are!
Coach Shakes Mashaba also recently named his squad to face Gambia this Saturday. We wish Bra Shakes and the boys all the best and, although their qualification for the 2017 AFCON is all but impossible, there is still the 2018 World Cup qualifiers to think about.
Cheers
VeeJay
