BOLLOCKZ to BOOING! Shakes Kungwane weighs in on the big Kaizer Chiefs debate PLUS Daily Mail Grapevine columnist Rob Shepherd on Ballz visual radio

Safe hands: Deshi
Bhaktawer in Ballz studio

KAIZER CHIEFS fan Zwee Maphala (www.twitter.com/mazweni7) stirred a hornet's nest on www.ballz.co.za this week when he volunteered to go live on BOLLOCKZ! to present the case that the AmaKhozi are RIGHT to boo players.

Zwee, a lifelong Chiefs fan, admits to crying and "kicking the coffee table" when his side loses, but his argument (concisely put on the video below) is that fans pay for their tickets and have a right to boo Kingston Nkhatha when he is not performing.

With Chiefs double-winning boss Stuart Baxter saying such fans are "childish" as he defended his Zimbabwean striker, Zwee bravely stuck to his guns, insisting: "How do we get the coach to listen to the fans? This is our way of getting his attention."





Former Kaizer Chiefs player and SuperSport football analyst Shakes Kungwane (www.twitter.com/shege10) disputed that, saying: "Under no circumstances should players boo their own players. It ruins the players' confidence. It's not on."

With former Orlando Pirates and SABC analyst Deshi Bhaktawer (www.twitter.com/deshibhaktawer) in the studio nodding in agreement, Shakes also came out in support of the Buccaneers' African Champions League campaign, with the first leg played at a sold-out Orlando Stadium tonight.





The www.dailymail.co.uk Grapevine columnist Rob Shepherd (www.twitter.com/robshepherd5) gave BOLLOCKZ! viewers and listeners the lowdown on the week's European action and interacted brilliantly with Deshi - even promising to give the African Champions League a mention in his column this week!

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!

BIGGER GAME NEXT WEEK: the ultimate Soweto Derby verdict from Orlando Pirates boss Roger de Star

The one that got away: Kingston Nkhatha

A single SMS from Orlando Pirates boss Roger de Sa says it all about Saturday’s controversial Soweto derby: “Like before. Bigger game next week.”

With Saturday night’s African Champions League final first leg looming, Kaizer Chiefs fans can breathe a huge sigh of relief. Kingston Nkhatha’s off-side equaliser  – clearly scored with a little help from linesman Enoch Molefe’s unflagging support – will not be the subject of intense scrutiny for the rest of the week.

Roger and his Buccaneers have bigger fish to fry.

The final against champions and seven-time African champions Al Ahly – this Saturday in Orlando and the next Saturday in Egypt – is all that matters to the Buccaneers.

Roger is far more interested in picking out the raft of veteran Ah Ahly players who have said they will retire after the showdown, and in the news that their goalkeeper Sherif Ekrami stands accused of “faking injury” during Egypt’s lamentable 6-1 World Cup qualifying defeat against Ghana a fortnight ago.

That’s why Roger didn’t even both getting involved in the off-side debate while twitter got itself in a twist of “Enoch, Enoch. Who’s There? Kingston Nkhatha” jokes on the internet and the role referee Victor Hlungwayo played in the PSL encounter.

It’s not like refereeing controversy is new to the Soweto Derby. This year alone, we have had Major’s off-side effort in the Carling Cup final and Morgan Gould’s penalised “push” in the MTN8 semi-final.

Instead, Roger chooses to highlight the positive, saying: "Hopefully we can do our nation proud on Saturday – I’m even hoping to see a lot of yellow jerseys at Orlando, supporting us!”

Getting the message: Roger's SMS on Saturday

With Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter, incredibly, admitting: “If either side had gone for broke, they would have claimed the points,” we had Roger accepting: “We’re happy enough with a draw. It was a fair result from where I was.

"Both teams had chances. They played their game on the counter and we played our passing game, sometimes not as fluidly as usual, but we had our moments.

"It's not a bad result for us, away from home. Maybe next time we will play with fresh legs.”

And really, that’s the point. Orlando Pirates completely outplayed the double-winning South African champions for the first 25 minutes, playing good football.

But those endless flights to the heart of Africa took their toll and by the end, Pirates were happy to accept the Nkhatha injustice and settle for a point which, deceptively, leaves them bottom of the PSL, level with Golden Arrows on four points.

Of course, if they win their five games in hand, they’d go four points clear of current leaders SuperSport United and Moroka Swallows, but that’s for later.

For now, this week, this day, this moment, Roger and his over-worked squad have only one thing in mind. And it’s this: “We haven’t got that star on our shirt yet. That is our priority. That has always been our main aim.”

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!

BOLLOCKZ ON BALLZ! Roger de Sa (Orlando Pirates), Rob Shepherd (Daily Mail) and Joe Crann (Soccer Laduma) videos are HERE!

Here's my interview with Roger de Sa on my www.ballz.co.za football show BOLLOCKZ! on Thursday, where Roger told me how his first-teamers are barely training at the moment given the number of games they are playing at the moment.

With today's Soweto Derby imminent, Roger also explain that Lucky Lekgwathi was playing in friendlies and available for the big game against Kaizer Chiefs. He said: "Lucky is probably a better footballer than Ayanda Gcaba but he is approaching 38. Gcaba is more athletic. It's about horses for courses."

I also spoke to Rob Shepherd, the English Daily Mail's "Grapevine" columnist about European football - he said Russia should not be allowed to host a World Cup given levels of racism suffered by Yaya Toure and Manchester City in Wednesday's 2-1 win at CSKA Moscow.

And he mentioned my once-impressive throw-ins!

My producer Comfort Kheswa and I also talked to Soccer Laduma's Joe Crann, who CONFIRMED Orlando Pirates AND Kaizer Chiefs will compete together in the African Champions League next season if the Buccaneers beat champions Al Ahly in the two-legged final on November 2 and 9.

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!

EXCLUSIVE: BOLLOCKZ! talks to BOTH Soweto Derby coaches before the big one: MUSONA is OUT, MAJORO is FIT, LUCKY is AVAILABLE... and KHUNE is on the phone to clubs in Europe!

BOTH Soweto Derby head coaches appeared on my football show BOLLOCKZ! on www.ballz.co.za this morning - and between them they settled all the big questions looming before Saturday's sold-out showdown.

First Roger de Sa, fresh from the 1-1 draw in Tunisia against Esperance which put his team through to the African Champions League final, came on to congratulate his jet-lagged troops on their 4-0 Telkom Knock-Out quarter-final win over Golden Arrows last night.

Derby date: De Sa and Baxter

Roger explained how his players decided to stay in camp on their return from Tunisia via the United Arab Emirates on Monday afternoon, saying: "It's been a terrific ride for us, it's had it's ups and downs but the players have been brilliant all the way through.

"The players are barely training at the moment, they don't need a fitness coach they're playing so many games. I guess one day we may "hit the wall" but for now we're doing okay, man management is getting us through. Training at the moment consists mostly of playing with the ball and stretching.

"What I can tell you is our captain Lucky Lekgwathi IS fit. He DID suffer a death in the family, he missed some training but he played a friendly while we were away and he's playing another one today.

"Like everybody else he has to compete for a place in the side. Ayanda Gcaba is probably not as good as Lucky but he is more athletic. Lucky is nearly 38, he's still a great player but it's horses for courses.

"Gcaba suited out strategy against Esperance. It's up to Lucky now to work his way back in to the side. As far as I'm concerned there are NO SINISTER FORCES a work here!"

Kaizer Chiefs boss Stuart Baxter made time before the AmaKhosi training session this morning to reveal: "I have to tell you Knowledge Musona (who dislocated a shoulder after scoring the last-gasp equaliser in the Telkom Knock-out against Free State Stars on Sunday) is out for the derby.

"We're not sure how long he's out for, but you know what a dislocated shoulder can do. How it can pop again, even when you feel like you're recovered. It won't be giving him much piece for the next couple of weeks.

"But I have options. We could push Bernard Park up to No9, we've also got Kingston Nkhatha who looked sharp in training - and I can confirm Lehlohonolo Majoro is fit. He had a slight niggle in the groin area but he's fine now.

"He could be the automatic option with Knowledge out."

Baxter also confirmed: "Simphiwe Tshabalala is back in training and everybody else is raring to go."

The Scotsman, the first foreigner to win the PSL title in his first year in the PSL, added high praise for his goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune before the big derby, insisting: "He's not just one of the best in Africa, I'd throw that a bit wider and ask who's better than him in Europe. He's got the attitude to match his talent.

"Even as we speak he's on the phone to several professional clubs asking about his signature!"

You can see the Roger de Sa video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eg_YnXvPLXI

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!

Orlando Pirates: Official statement from chairman Dr Irvin Khoza on reaching the African Champions League final

In the chair: Dr Irvin Khoza

Dr Irvin Khoza has just released the statement below after his Orlando Pirates returned home from Tunisia today, having qualified for the final of the African Champions League for the first time since they became the first South African side to win the tournament in 1995.

It's fascinating and brilliantly written. Too often we have wondered about his role in the crusade which has ranged from the Comores and Zambia, via a torrid to trip to the DRC and group games in the Congo and Egypt, twice.

I guess now we know. He DOES retain a healthy interest in his Sea Robbers. He has input. And he tells it well. How about this: "To the team I say, be conscious for consciousness is as important as competence."

And as his side reached the final on the back of two defeats and three successive draws, the Doctor accepts:  "Our journey to the final can hardly be referred to as a juggernaut."

Khoza also reveals he has ‘imvuselelo’, chats with the lads, where he tells them to work on body language and focus on history.

As his Buccaneers prepare for their home and away final against seven-time champions Al Ahly on November 2 (Orlando) and 9 (Egypt), he ends with: "The success of Orlando Pirates is not for the Buccaneers alone. It is for our nation and region."

Here's the statement in full:

There has been a conversation within Orlando Pirates Football Club that I believe it is now the right time to share with the nation.

I have visited with the team from time to time to do ‘imvuselelo’ – to continue a conversation to make sure that all our energies and efforts work in concert towards a common goal. After qualifying for the semi-final, I wrote a letter to the technical team and each of our players. I deemed it important that they knew, from me, that their success was witnessed. It can be soul destroying to have unwitnessed achievements.

In this letter I tell every member of the team that we are on a path of history. I recall that they survived what commentators termed the ‘group of death’ – that many could not see us through the two Egyptian giants. I commended the players for being conscious on the ball, off the ball and when the ball was in transit. I commented specifically about their body language. I shared with them my observation that their body language meant business and that they played for each other.

I reminded the team that we had unfinished business in Tunisia – that in Tunis, in 2006, against CS Sfaxien that we lost in the semi-final. We had planned to play our Saturday match against Esperance in red. Unfortunately we were forced to use a combination of the black top with red pants and socks to avoid any clash of colours. It was after-all in Tunisia that we launched our red jersey in 2006.

I believe that it is time for me to let in the nation on the conversation. The outpouring of support and emotions by our nation cannot go unacknowledged. I am a proud South African who shares a country with compassionate fellow citizens. I am heartened by the media’s coverage in the SADC region where our brethren down South of Africa see Orlando Pirates’ step by step achievements, as their own.

Our journey to the final can hardly be referred to as a juggernaut. The devotion and sacrifice demanded to achieve a juggernaut was, however, consistently displayed by the Orlando Pirates team en-route to this all important final. Our team had to encounter a path with TP Mazembe, Zamalek, Al Ahly and Esperance who together have won the CAF Championship eighteen times.

The first leg of the final at Orlando Stadium on the 2nd of November will be the 15th game played by Orlando Pirates since the beginning of the competition. The team played a further nine games in the PSL, this notwithstanding the four ABSA Premiership games that had to be postponed.

A route to the final that included AC Leopards, the 2012 CAF Confederations Cup Champions; Zamalek , five-time CAF Champions League Champions; Al Ahly, the defending seven-time CAF Champions League Champions; and Esperance, two-time CAF Champions League winners is no mean achievement. This achievement talks to more. It talks to the competitive league that the PSL is.

Most of the teams that have dominated the CAF Champions League play in leagues that are two-horse races dominated by two teams always in contention for the top spot.

The PSL is highly competitive and hence not predictable. It is also punishing in its schedule that includes the ABSA Premiership and three cup competitions. I have to commend the Orlando Pirates players for not complaining, at any stage during this grueling contest. It is worth noting that when Zambia won the AFCON, most of its players were playing in the PSL.

The success of Orlando Pirates is not for the Buccaneers alone. It is for our nation and region. I pray that Orlando Pirates success in the Championship spur Bafana-Bafana to another AFCON win reminiscent of the 1996 success after Orlando Pirates triumphed in 1995.

To the team I say, be conscious for consciousness is as important as competence. This final will require that you are as aware as you are able; mindful as you are experienced, sensible as you are skilled, awake as you are fit. One attribute without the other will result in lapses that you now know you cannot afford at this level of the competition.

I would like to thank our South African Ambassador in Tunis. Thank you for creating a home away from home for our team.

Thank you to the media here at home and in the region. Your interest, confidence and support grew with the progress the team made in the Championship.

DR IRVIN KHOZA

CHAIRMAN

Dr Khoza's admission - that Orlando Pirates have not gone through the African Champions League like a juggernaut - is borne out by their road to the final (below, taken from the OrlandopiratesFC.com website).

Pirates horde: OR Tambo today (with thanks to OPFC)

Incredibly, including the stormy passage past DRC's TP Mazembe, the Buccaneers have played 10, won three, drawn four and lost three in the Champions League - and their last FIVE, reads NO wins, two defeats and three draws.

But that won't bother Dr Khoza or Roger de Star as he is now known. With their national league suspended Al Ahly are an aging side with star players aiming to retire after the final. Pirates beat them 3-0 at Al Gouna before the nail-biting 0-0 draw to finish the Group A.

Pirates returned amid tumultuous scenes at OR Tambo yesterday with Roger breaking his silence after the tense semi-final draw in Esperance: "We've got a Telkom Cup match with Golden Arrows on Wednesday night so we're going straight in to camp, we'll just carry on doing our thing.

"Esperance was tough, the crowd were intimidating and there were lasers everywhere. Testing conditions. But we were outstanding, my players were fantastic.

“It’s been a wonderful turn-out at the airport today. I want to thank the fans, the minister & the MEC, and all the media gathered today."

Journey to Final

Preliminary Round

Orlando Pirates 5-0 Djabal

Djabal 0-4 Orlando Pirates

(Aggregate: 9-0 to Pirates)

1/16th Round

Zanaco 0-1 Orlando Pirates

Orlando Pirates 2-1 Zanaco

(Aggregate: 3-1 to Pirates)

1/8th Round

Orlando Pirates 3-1 TP Mazembe

TP Mazembe 1-0 Orlando Pirates

(Aggregate: 3-2 to Pirates)

Group Stages

Gameweek 1 : Orlando Pirates 0-0 AC Leopards

Gameweek 2: Al Ahly 0-3 Orlando Pirates

Gameweek 3: Orlando Pirates 4-1 Zamalek

Gameweek 4: Zamalek 2-1 Orlando Pirates

Gameweek 5: AC Leopards 1-0 Orlando Pirates

Gameweek 6: Orlando Pirates 0-0 Al Ahly

Semi-Finals

Orlando Pirates 0-0 Esperance TP

Esperance TP 1-1 Orlando Pirates

(Aggregate: 1-1 Pirates win on away goals rule)

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!

FINAL ANALYIS Drawlando: when a criticism becomes a compliment and Roger reaches for De Star

BACK TO RED! Rooi Mahamutsa

SIX months can be a lifetime in football. In half a year, the beautiful game can evolve beyond recognition, particularly in the heart of a throbbing Soweto. The very meaning of words can change, villains are born as heroes fade, African giants are cut down and rendered pointless pygmies.

When champions Orlando Pirates stumbled over the line in third-place after a series of draws at the end of last season, they were gleefully derided as “Drawlando” largely by Kaizer Chiefs fans, relishing their refound double-winning dominance.

This season, after a series of quite miraculous ties, the word “Drawlando” has turned from criticism to compliment. The second-leg draw against Kaizer Chiefs which put the Buccaneers in to the MTN8 final, the desperate final point against Al Ahly which saw them in to the knock-out phase of the African Champions League… and on Saturday night, the epic 1-1 draw which put them past Esperance on away goals.

Incredible. Counting the first leg 0-0 stalemate against the fearsome Tunisians at the Drawlando Stadium and the drawn MTN final which they lost on penalties to Platinum Stars, Pirates have drawn FIVE of their last SEVEN fixtures.

But in that time, Rogério Paulo Cesar De Sá has become simply Roger de Star as the apparently hopeless crusade for a second African Champions League title grinds towards an epic home-and-away conclusion.

The bizarre retirement of Benni “Goalmachine” McCarthy has been forgotten in the wake of Lennox “Bracela” Bacela’s move from Bloemfontein Celtic, the inspirational skipper Lucky “Sinister” Lekgwathi has been supplanted in the space of 90 epic minutes by one Ayanda “Stand-in” Gcaba.

We should mention too, the rise of Senzo “Spotstopper” Meyiwa at No1 after years of Moeneeb “Slimkat” Josephs in a heartbreaking glove story and the rise and rise of Lehlogonolo “Vieira” Masalesa whenever a midfield reinforcement was required.

And most importantly of all, the injured Siya “Ironman” Sangweni finds himself edged out in the defend-and-score stakes by Rooi “Mooi” Mahamutsa, goal-scoring hero of Tunis.

From the bitter hangover of the double-treble slump at the end of last season, Orlando Pirates find themselves two steps (how we wish it was a single final at a neutral venue) from continental domination for the first time since the slowly dimming legends of 1995.

Everything has changed. Reputations, fortunes, buzz words, heroes; they’ve all altered radically in six turbulent months, a period during which, I believe, has been despite the club chairman, no because of.

What was it Roger de Star said before a crusade which has flitted from Comores to Angola and on to a blacked-out DRC, from Egypt twice to the Congo and Tunisia? “"We have been underdogs since the first game we played in this competition, and that is fine, we are good with that, no problem.”

Winning is for sissies. Missed chances are a mere detail only SABC football analysts harp on about. Don’t bet against another two draws to clinch the crown.

And so the the FINAL DETAILS: Pirates play Al Ahly, penalty shoot-out winners over Cameroon's Coton Sport, at Orlando on November 2 in the first leg. And the trophy will be decided in Egypt on November 9.

And if you doubt Pirates can do it against the seven-time winners and reigning champions, try this from Don Mattera, an extract from his poem compiled last year on the 75^th anniversary of Buccaneering football:

”THEY WILL SING OR THEY WILL SAY:

AH, BEHOLD THE MIGHTY BUCCANEERS

THEY CONQUERED ALL THEIR PEERS

AND SURPASSED THE GRUELLING TEST

AND WEAR THE MOST-COVETED PRIZE:

THE GOLDEN STAR OF MOTHER AFRICA”

Drawlando. Shout it: DRAWLANDO! You know it makes sense.

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. Roger de Star and Alan Freese both lined up for this week. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!

EXCLUSIVE: SAFA President Danny Jordaan laments "people who play politics with South African football"

DYNAMIC DUO: Nelson Mandela and Danny Jordaan
celebrate South Africa being awarded the 2010 World Cup

NEWLY ELECTED SAFA president Danny Jordaan reacted with disbelief today when he was asked to respond to rumours suggesting kit sponsors Puma had “just” terminated their contract with Bafana Bafana.

Jordaan, elected to the top job on September 28 after a long-running battle with ineligible rival Irvin Khoza, Jordaan snorted: “This is so strange! How can you kill a person twice?

“Puma announced they were withdrawing their sponsorship on January 4 this year when Kirsten Nematandani was president. We have known about this for months. The Sunday Times wrote all about it eight months ago.

“But now, today, they say Puma have withdrawn. I have the letter from January showing Puma had already pulled out.”

Jordaan, who saw off Khoza’s proxy Mandla "Shoes" Mazibuko to win the presidency last month, always knew the knives would be out for him once he became the most powerful man in South African football.

Now 62, Jordaan has spent his life fighting against sporting injustice – he turned his back on his own cricket and football career and was banned for his part in the Apartheid sports boycott in the days when Khoza was not involved in sport (see these links http://www.iol.co.za/sport/a-tale-of-drugs-money-and-cars-1.90760#.UmACvdJHIXE and http://mg.co.za/article/2001-08-31-ghosts-come-back-to-haunt-the-iron-duke among many others) - and Jordaan remains confident he can lead South African football to a brave new era.

Only one winner: Khoza and Jordaan

Now a key part of CAF while helping Morocco and Brazil to prepare for upcoming AFCON 2015 and World Cup 2014 tournaments, Jordaan laughed: “Somebody is playing politics with South African football again. That’s what they do. But it doesn’t bother me, we have plans in place.

“Everyone’s saying sponsors are deserting SAFA now I’m president, but I can tell you the ABSA decision was taken BEFORE I took over.

“I have their letter, dated September 26. But people have their own agendas. They are putting politics ahead of football.

“As Gordon Igesund told you this morning Neal, we are ready with our Master Plan to change the face of our football. Our technical committee has come up with the names and our Under 17 and Under 20 teams will get new coaches and we will see a revival.

“We have the R500m FIFA Legacy Fund available to help with development, and we are dealing with that every day.

“These are the real stories. Not some eight-month old tale about a sponsor withdrawing. Please tell your friends: you can’t go to a funeral twice!”

BOLLOCKZ! my show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.

You can also follow me on www.twitter.com/nealcol for all the latest sports news… and read my “Neal and Pray” column every Tuesday inwww.thenewage.co.za.

BOLLOCKZ! is backed by www.topodds.com - have a look at their site for my latest sports betting advice!