Heaven help SA football

It is amazing what 10 days of waking up to the sun streaming through the curtains and then cutting the lawn, clearing the garage and catching up on some reading can do to one's general well being. But, let me first send compliments of the New Year to my friends, colleagues, chommies, compadres, comrades, family and most of all....readers of this blog.

Last year in November, my blood pressure shot up to frightening proportions at the slightest provocation. I needed medical attention when clubs denied national Under-23 coach Shakes Mashaba the opportunity to assemble the strongest possible squad for the CAF 2012 London Olympic Games qualifiers in Morocco.

They withdrew their players because they felt the tournament did not fall within the Fifa calendar.

I agree that a compromise was eventually reached and a portion of the players Mashaba needed were allowed to travel to Morocco, but the decision highlighted the deep-rooted divisions that exist between the custodians of South African football.

What has happened to the so-called Soccer City Accord between Safa and the PSL? I was under the impression that the two organisations have agreed to work closely and harmoniously together in future following the Morocco debacle... that was a mere three weeks ago.

I see now Pitso Mosimane is departing for Malabo for a friendly game against Equatorial Guinea with a rag-tag team. Several clubs have apparently withdrawn their players and to hell with national pride or the agreement reached between Safa and the PSL.

I have heard all sorts of reasons as to why clubs decided to withdraw their players. I understand some players have been withdrawn because Equatorial Guinea is too far and the players will get exhausted during the trip. Other clubs claim their players have better things to do.

I also understand that some clubs feel their players need to catch up on the New Year bargain clothing sales that usually characterise the beginning of every year and so cannot be bothered with a trip to West Africa, let alone a national trip.

I believe the government is working round the clock to impose some media sanctions to force journalists to reveal their sources as well as classified information and so, before that legislation becomes law, I am allowed to say I have also received highly classified information that some clubs actually withdrew their players from national duty because they claim their players need to rest.

Phew, unzima lomthwalo! I was seriously under the impression that since this campaign started, the league has been interrupted enough times and coaches have been complaining about the stop-start nature of the current campaign. In addition, the players have been given seven weeks leave due to the Afcon in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

Now, I have never been a wizz-kid in figures but since the league started in August, I seem to have counted six wasted weeks already and an additional seven weeks on the horizon. How many weeks do our players really need to recover from the rigors of the competitive Absa Premiership?

Is that the real reason that the players have been withdrawn or are the players spared for some upcoming stake games that the clubs have organised? What are our priorities as a nation? What do we want to achieve as a nation?

Why is it so difficult for the two organisations to find common ground? Why is it that our national teams always struggle about the same problem without the two organisations finding a lasting solution to this seemingly petty issue?

I said earlier that I spent the festive season in Mokopane and missed visiting some of the Kwenaite clan that inhabit the Bakenburg area, but the experience of re-connecting with family and with nature was invaluable.

I discovered that I could still smell the fresh morning breeze. I smelt the wood-fire as it wafted lazily up the sky, woke up to the smell of cow dung; goats bleating and listened to the plaintive cry of the titihoya in the distant and felt rejuvenated.

I now feel ready to face the challenges that confront us in our daily lives and will not (which is part of my New Year resolution) rave and rant nor will I berate our club owners as I run the risk of letting my blood pressure shoot up.

I am disappointed that, even in 2012, we cannot seem to find a solution to a problem that has plagued our game since we returned from self-imposed isolation to international football back in 1992.

Maybe I missed something while in Mapela. Perhaps I have been quick on the draw and club owners have extenuating reasons why they have withdrawn their players and I welcome views that will enlighten me as to the reasons why club owners are looking down on national duty and the general feeling among readers regarding this never-ending problem that refuses to go away and which we cannot seem to find a solution for.