Sports fans in the Eastern Cape have something to cheer about at last!
The province’s top soccer side, Chippa United, has reached a final for the very first time. The Chilli Boys will contest the Nedbank Cup final after they beat Pretoria Callies 1-0 in an away semi-final this past Saturday.
Not only is it something for the fans to celebrate, but also for the players. The problem for the modern sportsman and woman is that it has become very difficult for them to celebrate their achievements properly.
The professional sports star has a lot to think about before getting into post-match celebrations.
There are the fitness levels to keep up, the responsibility towards the sponsors, management and the fans, respectable behaviour in the public eye, with social media everywhere and COVID-19 regulations to keep in mind, and the next match is usually not far away.
Hopefully there was an opportunity for the Chilli Boys to get some sort of celebration in before the hard work started again.
There are of course many ways to celebrate a milestone, but in the amateur sports days, it was usually combined with some serious drinking.
Being a sports journalist for more than three decades, I have seen some outrageous celebrations.
The face of sports journalism has changed over the years, but back in the days it was sort of expected of the scribes to keep up with the celebrations.
These celebrations were a huge source of information before regular news conferences and sports communication officers became the norm.
There are many celebration stories to tell, but two big evenings stand out for me.
Kallie Grobler was the central figure in the one celebration. Kallie played many rugby matches for Eastern Province and Despatch before returning to Mpumalanga to end his career with (the then) South Eastern Transvaal.
After a Friday night victory in Emalahleni (Witbank), Grobler led a group of players to the farm of Gerrie Gerrits, a rugby administrator at that time.
It turned into an all-night celebration when a few of the big forwards were asked to catch a sheep and get it ready for the celebration braai.
When the feast meal was ready the players were a lot more tired than after their match and the meal was not enjoyed as it should have been.
The other celebration session that stood out for me was a celebration even before a milestone was reached.
You get those players who can take a beforehand celebration in their stride and perform even better than was expected of them the next day.
Former Protea cricket star, Herschelle Gibbs, was one of those and the late Windies bowler Sylvester Clarke, who played for various South African provincial teams in his career, was another.
I had an all-night cricket discussion (in between drinks) with Clarke and the next day he delivered a brilliant bowling performance in extremely hot conditions.
Well, let’s hope Chippa United gives us even more reason to celebrate after the Nedbank Cup final.
- Chippa United will meet Tshakuma Tsha Madzivhandila (TTM) in the Nedbank Cup final on 8 May in Bloemfontein. Kick-off is at 18:00.
