By Kushatha Ndibi
He was a full time employee at PJ Stars and yet Robert Modiadie was not guaranteed a pay cheque at the end of the month.
Sometimes the goalkeeper got his money, sometimes he didn't and he counted himself lucky when he got only half or a quarter of his salary.
He wasn't the only one that was suffering at this Mvela Golden League outfit; all his colleagues faced the same problems.
| 'It's been a difficult season' |
New management might have taken over just a month ago but it will take coach Walter Rautman a long time to get the players motivated again. And time is what this club don't have. They are playing Jomo Cosmos on Sunday, at Orlando Stadium (3.15pm) in the first round of the Absa Cup.
"It's been a difficult season," sighed Modiadie who has been with the Soweto-based outfit for six years. "I just hope we will be rewarded for what happened in the past with a win against Cosmos."
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Some time ago, if one would have asked the goalkeeper whether he believed they would proceed to the next stage of the tournament, Modiadie would probably have said "yes" without hesitation. That's because at the time, they were sitting second on the Mvela log. Some even predicted they would topple Bidvest Wits from the top spot.
But this week, during their training session at the Edenvale Sports Ground, Modiadie didn't appear confident about his side's chances against Ezenkosi.
"I can't say we will beat Cosmos. I hope we do. But we will see what happens," said Modiadie.
The lack of confidence probably stems from the club drifting out into fifth position.
Rautman blames the club's dip in performance on the money problems they have had this season.
"Just until last week, we had to train at that corner," said the coach pointing to a small pitch nearby. "Sometimes the players didn't attend training because they were not paid. There were also times when I had to take money from my pockets for petrol or to buy food for the players," added Rautman.
To make matters worse, the team will be without six of their players on Sunday including top midfielder Brian Kgafane.
"I haven't seen Brian. I don't know where he is but I hear that he is injured," said Rautman.
And as for Modiadie, he still doesn't regret resigning from his job as a researcher at a private clinic two months ago.
"It was difficult to do both jobs because I had to ask for permission from the hospital every time we had to travel."
- This article was originally published on page 24 of The Star on March 10, 2006
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