I MUST admit that any feeling of patriotism that was within me was sucked dry after I heard about the senseless shooting of Bafana Bafana captain Senzo Meyiwa. Our national football captain gunned down made me sick to my inner core, even forcing me to pull my car to the side of the road when I first heard the news on the radio the morning after.
How could I feel anything for a country that allows such acts of violence to occur? Still in a state of shock and now anger, I turned towards my football colleague John Goliath and expressed my remorse.
Visibly shaken too, he shared his last few moments with Meyiwa while on a recent trip to Pointe-Noire where the late Orlando Pirates goalie put in a heroic performance to thwart the Congolese. He advised me to watch that match again and take particular notice of an emotional Meyiwa during the national anthems prior to the game.
I did just that upon getting home, and also found recordings of Pirates’ African Champions League matches on my PVR and watched them too, and also his last match against Ajax Cape Town just last Saturday in the pouring rain.
Meyiwa’s brilliant performances in all those matches filled me with mixed emotions. On the one side, I was still angry that such a talent had been cut down just when it was approaching its prime, but it also reignited the hope within me for our country as the 27-year-old had actually won his life-battle a long time ago.
Originally from Umlazi in KwaZulu-Natal, Meyiwa rose above the daily struggles of life to establish himself as one the premier goalkeepers in Africa and a leader of men and is therefore someone who needs to be cherished especially now that he is no longer with us.
And if you are wondering why I am writing about a footballer in a cricket column because this feeling resonates with all our national teams. The “Protea Fire” campaign (see picture above) brilliantly captures the pride AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Co experience when they pull on that green or white jumper with the Proteas crest emblazoned across their heart.
Listening to the supposedly soft-spoken Amla say “who bats for eight hours to save a Test, who does that?” sends shivers down my spine. It’s moments like these that remind me why I am a South African.
This might sound emotional and over the top, but these are emotional times and the time to realise that as South Africans we are natural-born survivors and it is best reflected in our sport. It is also not only at international level, but right down to grassroots levels where part-time coaches, teachers and parents are trekking around their cities every day and weekends transporting children to their respective practises and matches to simply give them a chance at fulfilling their dreams.
For a selected few like Meyiwa, Amla, Bryan Habana, Chad le Clos and Ernie Els that might ultimately be realised when they line-up against the world’s best, but for others it is simply a chance at a better life. And that alone is something to be celebrated.
TWEET OF THE WEEK
@VDP_24: My thoughts and prayers goes out the family of Senzo Meyiwa. May you find the comfort in the Lord during this difficult time. RIP. -– Vernon Philander, Proteas opening bowler.
WHO TO FOLLOW
@KieronPollard55 – Follow the West Indian superstar while he plays for the Cape Cobras in this season’s RamSlam T20.
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