Sport

The Pharaohs are deserving winners of this year’s Africa Cup of Nations. If they had not won against the “Indomitable Lions” (just as well lions were not asked when Cameroon chose this name), they would have been worthy victors for coming up with ever-so-novel goal celebrations at this year’s tournament. First it was Zidan who, […]

South Africa’s three major sports are in turmoil and the problems lie with the politicians and individual administrators whose racism, negligence and megalomania are coming home to roost. South African cricket, after two successful series wins and a grand send-off for Shaun Pollock, is in the process of creating long-term hatred by the obsession with […]

Isn’t it ironic that one of the cornerstones in the fight against apartheid was sporting isolation? The fact that South African team selections were based on race was so abhorrent to the international sporting community that the country was sent packing until it got its house in order. The International Olympic Committee has confirmed inter […]

South Africa and the Springboks, despite the interference and politicking of Mike Stofile and his cabal, took a trip to France and emerged as the world champions. Who can ever forget those wonderful scenes as our president was hoisted shoulder-high by the second rugby team to unite a nation? A shining light (sans power failure) […]

On June 1 2002, Hansie Cronje, the former South African cricket captain and the man whose life had been destroyed by the King commission into match-fixing, was killed in a plane crash in the Outeniqua Mountains. My brother kneels, so saith Kabir, To stone and brass in heathen wise, But in my brother’s voice I […]

Bafana Bafana take on Tunisia on Sunday with some confidence after their 1-1 draw with Angola in the opening game of their Group D contest against Angola. While the team will be glad to get away from Southern African opposition and even if it is to take on one of the giants of North African […]

“He can put his foot on the ball.” That is high praise for a playmaker in soccer. In fact, that type of player is what we mean by a South African style: the slow build-up, flair, the devastating pass into space and, of course, the dazzling dribble. I wonder if that style of play can […]

Tuesday January 22 — Lawson Naidoo Arriving in Sekondi after a fascinating yet arduous road trip from the capital, Accra, I am bewildered by the sight of the brand-spanking-new Sekondi Sports Stadium. It is an oasis in the desert that is Sekondi. The stadium resembles a space ship dropped in the middle of nowhere. Built […]

Monday January 21 — Lawson Naidoo The city of Accra exploded into colour and cacophony this weekend in anticipation of the start of the Africa Cup of Nations tournament being staged in this dynamic, robust and bustling metropolis. Most cars, taxis, buses, bicycles and wheelchairs on the streets of the capital were adorned with the […]