In any sporting contest, there are always winners and losers. But when Clover FC takes on Diadora FC in the senior men’s Coke Cup final at Athlone Stadium tomorrow (kick-off at 18h30, coach Mangaliso “Shakes” Ntombana will emerge as a winner regardless of the outcome.
The Diadora mentor will, of course, do all in his power to ensure that his Hanover Park-based team emerge victorious – but he lives in the same Philippi community as several of the Clover players, and he has coached many of them at some point.
“Congratulations to Clover for reaching the final,” Ntombana said. “I coached a lot of their players before and they live in my area. As a community we are proud of them. But tomorrow, hard luck to them. As Diadora we need this trophy more than they do.”
For Clover, on the other hand, reaching the Coke Cup final was their main goal, so they are more relaxed than in the previous stages of the competition.
“You must understand that Clover doesn’t have players in ABC Motsepe and other top leagues,” said Clover chairman and coach, Songezo Ndyoko. “Our players only play at amateur level, and it’s the first time for many of them to play at Athlone Stadium. That was our main goal- and we have achieved it. So if we win it will be a bonus because we have achieved our goal.”
Unlike Clover, who have been in existence for a number of years and won the Mandalay LFA league title three times, the Athlone LFA-affiliated Diadora were only established this year and finished their league as runners up.
So how did they manage to beat the odds and reach the Coke Cup final in their very first go?
It all began when Ntombana, a CAF B-licence coaching certificate, finished coaching Grassy Park United at the end of their ABC Motsepe 2021-22 season. He was soon approached by one of his mentors to help grow the new brand.
His first task was to create a winning mentality among his players. “How football works is that you will have good and bad games. So even if we have a bad day in the office and we don’t play well, we want to win. We try to do whatever it takes to get a goal, from free kicks or throw-ins.”
One of the “weapons” Diadora have in their arsenal is a good longball thrower – and some good jumpers. “We have scored many goals this season through long throw-ins. I know Clover also have good headers of the ball, but we will certainly use it tomorrow.”
Another advantage that Ntombana’s team has used is a good mix of players and playing styles. “Black players are usually good when it comes to short passes, skills and combination play, while coloured players tend to be good in the air, prefer low risk football, play forward and are very aggressive. If you have a nice combination of the two, then you are sorted.”
Shakes will count on these as Diadora aims to become only the second team from Hanover Park to win the Coke Cup. “We have prepared well, and we want the Coke Cup desperately for the people of Hanover Park.”
To achieve that, they will have to overcome a Clover side that is known as the Kings of Comebacks. The Mandalay LFA champions came back from 3-1 down in the last 16 round to equalize before winning the tie on penalties. In the quarters they were trailing 3-0 at half time, but managed to equalize and went on to win on penalties. In the semis they were also trailing 2-0, but equalized in the second stanza to go on and win 3-0 on penalties.
“We have a good fighting spirit in the team,” Ndyoko commented before their semi-final victory over Seaside Spurs.
As much as Clover have achieved their goal of playing at Athlone Stadium, they’ll still be bringing that fighting spirit to tomorrow’s game and going for the win.
“Yes, we are chilled, but we are going there to fight,” Ndyoko noted. “And hopefully we can make history – and become the first team from one of the black African communities to win the final of the Coke Cup in the senior men’s division.”
Edited by Nicklaus Kruger
