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Tale of a teacher who became a soccer coach my default
Unsung hero of our beautiful game (Ngwato Petje).
Ngwato Petje born from Ga-Mphahlele in Limpopo became a soccer coach by default. He was never trained or prepared to become a coach, but Petje had always shown he will become a successful coach. He has won all what is to be won in the South African school sports. He has also won TWO University of Pretoria’s soccer championship.
I will first Congrate Clapham High School soccer team for their consistent play in all of South African School sports championships. The team is coached by my friend Ngwato Petje, one of the most unsung soccer coaches of South Africa. I believe that people like Petje should be recognized by SAFA for their contribution to South African school sports.
I first met Petje “Mncwango” in 2006 in UP Groenkloof Kiaat boys House. By then, Petje was one of the soccer players of our house soccer team. He was actually a player coach. While playing, Petje would miraculously still have the time to coach his fellow players. By this time he was already showing that he would became a future coach. One day he told me that he likes to pay in the middle for one reason; he said that ‘to play position 6 gives him an opportunity to be close to every player in the field’. This he said will ‘enable him to talk or coach everyone’. Remember he was just a player. In 2007 without being elected, Petje took the role of being House Kiaat’s soccer coach. The same year he won UP soccer championship with his team. The following year the team won the championship again. All because of Petje’s natural coaching abilities.
Now Petje is doing soccer miracles at Clapham High school, where he work as a teacher coach. Since he started coaching the Clapham High school soccer team, Petje has won a many national championships including Key Motsepe and Macdonald school championship. His recent success is Macdonald Championship he and his Clapham soccer team won in Pretoria’s Lucas Morepe Stadium. Over many year, this true student of the game has shown us that he can work well with young people and still able to achieve success.
Petje never planned or trained to become a soccer coach, he just became a coach by default. He is a true sample of natural talent and a portant role model to all aspiring coaches of the beautiful game. Petje represent few of the raw gifted soccer coaches of RSA. At his young age, Petje already achieved all what is to be achieved in South African School Sports. I think he deserve to be given a coaching contract at SAFA. “He is the most unrewarded successful school soccer coach of all times”. Give the man some………..
Mashabela Nicholas authored two books “Mirror of History” and “Road to Right”. He is also an MD of DESHABA MEDIA, a young publication company which pride itself to have published Four books including ‘Poetry Pantry’ (a poetry book by J. Dikobo).
