PITY that combustible Bafana Bafana coach Ephraim "Shakes" Mashaba is not in the habit of listening to advice and is unlikely to give a moment’s thought to the pearls of wisdom uttered by his Mamelodi Sundowns counterpart, Pitso Mosimane, this week.
The Sundowns coach’s view of the world has changed since his firebrand days and his blood pressure has probably lowered considerably since discovering that starting unnecessary fights with journalists makes about as much sense as an ashtray on a motorbike.
Mosimane is like a new man these days and he has a confident aura about him that would impress even the King of Cool himself, the irrepressible Samuel L Jackson.
Mosimane offered some friendly advice to Mashaba — who is capable of starting a fight in an empty room — as he warned the veteran that no coach has ever won a fight with the media.
It usually doesn’t take a lot to light Mashaba’s fuse these days and he has gone out of his way to alienate the media and even the nation’s soccer lovers over the past 12 months.
Perhaps Mosimane thought he could help save Mashaba from himself and try to prevent the Bafana coach from spinning out of control and derailing like a runaway train.
"It takes us a long time to learn and I have made mistakes. And I realise I have made mistakes," Mosimane said.
"When I was in (charge of) Bafana I lost it when I fought against you guys (the media) and ever since that I got six draws and you know what happened after that (Mosimane was fired).
"That’s why I told Bra Shakes (Mashaba) that ‘No coach has ever won the battle against the media’."
The 65-year-old Mashaba may be 14 years older than Mosimane but the younger man is certainly more than qualified to offer counsel to a veteran who seems hellbent on burning as many bridges as possible during his time in the Bafana seat.
Mosimane was Bafana coach between July 2010 and June 2012 and he fell foul of the media when he started an unnecessary spat that he now readily admits greatly contributed to his own demise.
In a 23-minute tirade that was full of fire and brimstone, Mosimane said at the time he was nobody’s schmuck and reserved most of his venom for journalists who had the temerity to criticise him after Bafana failed to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.
The battle lines were drawn after that rant at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium and those of us who had defended him furiously in the face of criticism could only watch as the man doused himself with petrol and set himself alight.
He was out of the job five months later and Mosimane will be the first person to tell you that his Bafana career could have taken a very different route had he not chosen this course of action.
He is a wiser man now and only a calamitous loss of form will stop him from leading Sundowns to another premiership title in May.
The calm disposition, the glass-half-full view of the world and the spectacular transformation have been so good for South African football’s Special One that the idea of him returning to the Bafana seat he vacated under a cloud almost four years ago is no longer far-fetched. Yeah I said it!
"You just shut your mouth, do your job, keep going and when you win, they (supporters) sing. Don’t go against supporters," Mosimane said. ‘‘The media and supporters, they make you, they break you. Keep quiet and focus on your job."
Pity that Mashaba will probably disregard this priceless advice and will most likely resume his long-running battles with the media when the qualifiers for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations recommence next month.
• Follow Ntloko on Twitter at @ntlokom
Shakes Mashaba talks to the players at Orlando Stadium on Monday. Picture: DUIF DU TOIT/ GALLO IMAGES
PITY that combustible Bafana Bafana coach Ephraim "Shakes" Mashaba is not in the habit of listening to advice and is unlikely to give a moment’s thought to the pearls of wisdom uttered by his Mamelodi Sundowns counterpart, Pitso Mosimane, this week.
The Sundowns coach’s view of the world has changed since his firebrand days and his blood pressure has probably lowered considerably since discovering that starting unnecessary fights with journalists makes about as much sense as an ashtray on a motorbike.
Mosimane is like a new man these days and he has a confident aura about him that would impress even the King of Cool himself, the irrepressible Samuel L Jackson.
Mosimane offered some friendly advice to Mashaba — who is capable of starting a fight in an empty room — as he warned the veteran that no coach has ever won a fight with the media.
It usually doesn’t take a lot to light Mashaba’s fuse these days and he has gone out of his way to alienate the media and even the nation’s soccer lovers over the past 12 months.
Perhaps Mosimane thought he could help save Mashaba from himself and try to prevent the Bafana coach from spinning out of control and derailing like a runaway train.
"It takes us a long time to learn and I have made mistakes. And I realise I have made mistakes," Mosimane said.
"When I was in (charge of) Bafana I lost it when I fought against you guys (the media) and ever since that I got six draws and you know what happened after that (Mosimane was fired).
"That’s why I told Bra Shakes (Mashaba) that ‘No coach has ever won the battle against the media’."
The 65-year-old Mashaba may be 14 years older than Mosimane but the younger man is certainly more than qualified to offer counsel to a veteran who seems hellbent on burning as many bridges as possible during his time in the Bafana seat.
Mosimane was Bafana coach between July 2010 and June 2012 and he fell foul of the media when he started an unnecessary spat that he now readily admits greatly contributed to his own demise.
In a 23-minute tirade that was full of fire and brimstone, Mosimane said at the time he was nobody’s schmuck and reserved most of his venom for journalists who had the temerity to criticise him after Bafana failed to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.
The battle lines were drawn after that rant at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium and those of us who had defended him furiously in the face of criticism could only watch as the man doused himself with petrol and set himself alight.
He was out of the job five months later and Mosimane will be the first person to tell you that his Bafana career could have taken a very different route had he not chosen this course of action.
He is a wiser man now and only a calamitous loss of form will stop him from leading Sundowns to another premiership title in May.
The calm disposition, the glass-half-full view of the world and the spectacular transformation have been so good for South African football’s Special One that the idea of him returning to the Bafana seat he vacated under a cloud almost four years ago is no longer far-fetched. Yeah I said it!
"You just shut your mouth, do your job, keep going and when you win, they (supporters) sing. Don’t go against supporters," Mosimane said. ‘‘The media and supporters, they make you, they break you. Keep quiet and focus on your job."
Pity that Mashaba will probably disregard this priceless advice and will most likely resume his long-running battles with the media when the qualifiers for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations recommence next month.
• Follow Ntloko on Twitter at @ntlokom
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