On a personal and professional level, I cannot claim to have watched many a Soweto Derby between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs.
What I have are boyhood memories of the two teams being mesmerised by the Lucas “Masterpieceas” Moripe-led Pretoria Callies, at the ol’ Super Stadium in the township of Atteridgeville.
Obviously, I also have memories of how the two Soweto visitors failed oh so dismally to crack the highly-professional Arcadia Shepherds at the Caledonian Stadium, east of the Pretoria central
business district.
I also remember the time when Bela-Bela’s Cisco Maphokga caught the eye of the technical team at Orlando Pirates, who gave him a run during a derby either against Kaizer Chiefs, if not Moroka
Swallows. My memory fails me.
Not that I have any intensions to undermine the Soweto Derby, but as a young sports reporter in my hometown of Pretoria, I can testify that soccer in the Jacaranda City was a different kettle
of fish.
Pretoria Callies and Arcadia Shepherds were amazing indeed, but there was one other team named Pretoria Sundowns.
The predominantly Coloured/Indian squad of Pretoria Sundowns had the Muslim Grounds in Marabastad as their home venue.
I have in recent years written a profile of the financial guru, Patrice Motsepe, with my research informed largely by a visit to the philanthropist’s home village of Mmakau, west of Pretoria.
An old-timer whose name evades my memory spoke about how the little boy, Patrice, used to pester his late dad, ABC Motsepe, to part with money for the lot of them to travel by suburban train
to Marabastad to watch Pretoria Sundowns.
I am not even going to remind you that the present-day celebrated club — since renamed Mamelodi Sundowns — is owned by none other than the older Patrice Motsepe.
One of the most nourishing aspects of the halcyon days Pretoria Sundowns, is that the likes of Smiley Moosa, Vincent “Tanti” Julius, Hans Moses and the Chinaman, King Son, used to abandon the
luxury of the lush lawns of the Muslim Grounds to play in the townships.
I learned much later from Omarjee Valli — owner of Marabastad’s legendary Steve’s Record Store — that Pretoria Sundowns chose to play friendly matches in Mamelodi, Atteridgeville, Mabopane and Ga-Rankuwa, as a subtle political statement.
That is, Pretoria Sundowns played in the townships in defiance of laws prohibiting racially-mixed sport.
Arcadia Shepherds, which played in the Whites-only National Football League, once featured the Indian, Smiley Moosa, under the name of an off-field white player.
The “risk” caused the Arcadia Shepherds all-White management “groot moeilikheid” (big trouble).
Even the late Sonnyboy “Bra Sanza” Ngobeni took the “risk” by fielding the Coloured, Ali Shaik, in his Mabopane Manchester City squad, which played in the Africans-only Zambuk League.
Later when sports segregation was struck off the statute books, white soccer legends such as Nicky Howe from Arcadia Shepherds, ended up in the townships for a coaching job at Pretoria Callies.
— The BEAT
