Play-off, the season�s clowning moment
Mqondisi Dube | Friday July 15, 2016 11:11
The sweat, the tackles, the thumping headers, last gasp equalisers and rasping shots of last season were all in vain.
A season that had appeared set for a nail biting end until the mid season arrival of the gangly Ofentse Nato, has left a nation with an enduring bitter taste.
The season has long ended, but officially it’s not over as Botswana remains the only country in the world still to crown its champion, off all the nations with a season that ends in May. It’s a noticeable, but unwanted record, which will take monumental effort to break.
On July 23, the circus that has characterised the second half of the season swings to the Francistown Sports Complex, a venue largely regarded as a ‘controversy virgin’.
The stadium only opened last year and only holds glorious moments where the Zebras have a proud record of four wins in five matches, while it is the same place which witnessed a moment of Onkabetse Mankgantai magic, when Orapa United sew up a famous Mascom Top 8 victory over feared Township Rollers in April.
But on July 23, the proud record that the stadium holds would be severely tampered with. A dubious match arrives in the northern city, to ensure Francistown gets its fair share of the rumbling controversy.
The stadium will, unwittingly, host the match, mischievously tagged the championship decider, but significantly carrying less meaning among football purists.
It is a contest which football is richer without, but in a mad season, has been labelled a normal, season defining contest.
Therefore it is acceptable that the mis-match is allowed to roar on at the immaculate 26,000 seater venue. When history books are written, Francistown Sports Complex would be recorded as the venue which hosted the infamous play-off.
On Tuesday, both Rollers and Chiefs, the Botswana Football Association (BFA), the Botswana Premier League (BPL) and the Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC) deliberated on the play-off and agreed to proceed for the sake of concluding the season.
It’s no longer about football but certain obligations which have to be met. A quick glance at both teams will reveal seismic shifts in both camps, with Chiefs particularly losing a number of key players including their coach, Mike Sithole.
Rollers have also seen departures and none of the players or technical staff would return to take part in the Francistown ‘madness’.
The football authorities argue they cannot afford to be in contempt of a ruling ordering the play-off and therefore the match, regardless of circumstances, has to be played.
The play-off is meant to decide champions from last season, but without some of last season’s finest talent.
Effectively, this does not represent the quality that the local league possesses. The driving power of Tendai Nyumasi that endured all season, will be missing. Sekhana Koko, a largely revered figure, will be far from the action, but was in the thick of things last season.
But the football community would be asked to accept that the play-off is representative of what transpired in the past season. It’s the bitterest pill most are refusing to swallow.
What will transpire on July 23 will not reflect the power that Rollers or Chiefs possessed last season. It will just be an event and not a process that a season should be.
A hollow victory beckons. Even football administrators will not celebrate, instead this would serve as a cruel reminder of how low the beautiful game has sunk. The play-off marks the season’s clowning, instead of the crowning, moment.