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SA coaches cry foul over non-payment for U18 AfroBasket

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FOUR months have passed since the U18 AfroBasket (for men and women) ended on South African shores. However, some of the rubble from the chaotic way Basketball South Africa (BSA) organised the tournament remains.

The national federation appointed technical staff for the U18 teams at the eleventh hour and agreed on payments for the two-week tournament in the South African capital, Tshwane. Sadly, long-time servants of South African basketball Florsheim Ngwenya, Nosipho Njokweni and Craig Gilchrist say they and their colleagues have yet to receive their payments.

Njokweni (coach of the women’s team) and Gilchrist (assistant to the men’s team) expressed their frustration with the national federation. The former national team players intimated that this was an age-old issue, which had become worse under the current executive, stewarded by Sanele Mthiyane.

BSA took their calls, but they have now gone quiet

Gilchrist says the lack of professionalism has long been the modus operandi of BSA. “First of all, there was no direct communication with me about coaching the under-18s. I found out about it (my appointment) on a social media post on Facebook, which I do not use. My wife showed me the post saying Florsh (Ngwenya) and I had been named coaches,” said the former national team captain. “I then tried to get hold of Sanele to find out if it was fake news. He said it was not and that the secretary general (Sibongile Fondini) would get a hold of me, but he did not. Curtis (Van Wyk), the team manager, called me to make the travel arrangements, and I just got on the plane and arrived there (in Tshwane).

AfroBasket Craig Gilchrist — **Craig Gilchrist says BSA has always operated haphazardly. Pictures: FIBA**

Gilchrist says they met with the federation’s leadership before the AfroBasket tipped off to thrash out payment matters. “Towards the end of the camp, Sanele and Sibongile (Fondini) met with the technical staff, and they said we would be paid for our time,” said Gilchrist.

Asked if they were presented with documents to sign, Gilchrist said the following: “There is never anything signed with BSA. In all my dealings with them since 1997 as a player, I have never signed anything with BSA.”

The former senior national men’s team coach says others who also served at the tournament are in a similar boat. He also says Fondini has stopped taking their calls regarding payment.

“None of the coaches, managers and medical staff have been paid from AfroBasket. Initially, the SG (Fondini) responded to our questions but has since gone quiet. We are all in the same WhatsApp group. A week ago, I got hold of Sanele and asked him (about payment). He gave me the same old political response, ‘Your message has been received and I will revert to you as soon as possible’,” said Gilchrist. “So it’s clear they are not going to pay us.”

Despite challenges with previous BSA administrations, Gilchrist says the current one has proven extremely difficult to work with. “In the nineties, we were frustrated with BSA because we felt they were not doing a proper job. If I compare that to now, they were doing a phenomenal job, there were IPTs for under-18s and 16s, national club championships that lasted longer than a week and national teams travelled regularly. They were doing way better than the current executive,” said Gilchrist.

Njokweni says things are much worse

Njokweni spoke in the same vein as Gilchrist regarding the state of the federation. “The things that happened when I was a player are still happening now since I have become a coach and it has become worse,” said Njokweni. “For the last four months, we have been asking about our payments, and their (BSA) response to us was they are waiting for money from the government. So we are still waiting and we don’t know how long that will take.”

SA coach Nosipho Njokweni — **Nosipho Njokweni did not have her full technical staff during the U18 AfroBasket.**

Njokweni recalled the rushed appointments and how BSA promised contracts that never materialised. Also after fulfilling their mandate, they are still to get a cent from the federation. “Two things happened. When they (BSA) asked us to take up the (coaching) job, it was the night before (the start of the AfroBasket). The second thing, during the camp, we were told (by BSA) that we would get contracts with a specified amount of money… It was Sibongile who showed us on his laptop what the contract would look like, but to this day nothing has happened (about payment),” said Njokweni.

She lamented the state of the game by comparing the time she was a player and the present condition. Njokweni says previous administrations did try to do right by them despite the inadequacies of the time.

“I feel the federation has taken advantage of a lot of things. I’ll tell you why. Twenty years ago, I was a player too. When I was with the national team, and we were playing away, I would get $100. If we were in the country, I would get R50,” said Njokweni. “The coaches would get their contracts, sign them and even if they did not get their money immediately they would get it soon after the tournament. So at least something was happening at that time. As much as we were not happy a lot was happening. Right now nothing is happening.”

Ngwenya feels there is a loss of trust

Like his two colleagues, Florsheim Ngwenya, coach of the U18 national men’s team at AfroBasket, has experienced various BSA administrations. He believes one thing has remained the same – unchanging operational habits.

“There is a payment structure that BSA agrees on with coaches and technical staff, but (BSA does not honour that),” said Ngwenya. “It’s sad that when you enter into an agreement and the one party breaches it. It is frustrating that we are still here today.”

Florsheim Ngwenya SA coach — **Florsheim Ngwenya is disappointed at BSA’s treatment of coaches and technical staff.**

Ngwenya stressed the need to work in a trustworthy environment in the future, as the current way of working was not palatable. “If you come back to me and tell me ‘we need your services’. I will ask what is going to be different this time around. It’s not about financial rewards. It is about trust. If the organisation is not able to meet its obligation they have to explain why,” said Ngwenya.

The senior national team coach says what makes him sad is the federation’s failure to acknowledge the sacrifices made by the coaches and technical staff. “It was disappointing because we were handling the administration for the kids. When you receive such a huge task, you do not want to moonwalk through it. You expect that they will appreciate you. It has not been the case. Even a thank you… Or a letter of acknowledgement for the work we put in. It’s not great, but it would have been ok. All we have gotten is dead silence and that is disappointing,” concluded Ngwenya.

At the time of publishing, the BSA had not responded to our requests for comment.

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Gilchrist reflects on glorious, but short-lived PBL

BNL can learn lessons from the PBL

NINETEEN ninety-four was a year of change in South Africa in almost every social sphere. From a sporting context, especially basketball, there was a momentary witnessing of a revolution in the form of the Premier Basketball League (PBL).

One of the players of that time, is the legendary Craig Gilchrist. He was among a cohort of ballers, who plied their trade in the league that brought a great boom to the country’s basketball scene.

During those heady days, the PBL had Allied Bank (now part of the ABSA group) and later Telkom as sponsors. Unfortunately, due to the maladministration of the PBL, it put paid to the endless possibilities, and the dreams of many aspiring players faded into the abyss.

Despite the sad ending of that league, the 53-year-old KwaZulu-Natal Marlins coach got on the nostalgic train. He spoke to The Big Tip Off with great fondness about his time as a Marlins player during the PBL era. He also took a tone of frustration at the slow progress of the now 10-year-old Basketball National League (BNL).

**Marlins coach Craig Gilchrist feels young players can learn a lot from the PBL era. Pictures: The BTO**

Gilchrist, a former national team coach, also explained that the BNL, which his Marlins team are a part of, could take some lessons from the defunct PBL.

“Being a part of the PBL was great. Being a part of the BNL now, we refer a lot to how great the PBL was. So, I don’t know why they are trying to reinvent the wheel with the BNL,” said Gilchrist, a PBL champion with the Marlins.

“With only eight franchises, the talent pool in the PBL was vast. All the talented players moved between eight teams instead of 12 as we have now. The level was higher then. There was sponsorship which allowed clubs to sign foreign players.

“The foreign players lifted the standard of the league because they had played elsewhere professionally. It’s what the Tigers are doing now. It was a shame that the PBL fell away, and it took so long to start the BNL. I wish they would take a few pages from the book of the PBL.”

**Craig Gilchrist won his only PBL title with the Marlins in 1997. Picture: Supplied**

The former South African national team captain says PBL wages were better than what current players earn today. He also pointed out that teams also travelled more in those heydays.

“It was great. Our pay was more than what the guys in the BNL are earning now. I was a full-on professional and played overseas between seasons,” said the national men’s team assistant coach. “There were also home and away games. Egoli Magic would come down to play the Marlins at DUT (Durban University of Technology), and we do the travel up for our away games.

“There was always home support and not the disadvantage of travelling like the teams outside Gauteng have to do these days. I wish we could go back to those days, so that the kids today can experience what we did.”

Gilchrist also had a stand-out moment from the PBL era.

“Winning the title with the Marlins in 1997. We had a great team that year. The guys got along well; it was like a brotherhood. To win a national league at any level is always exciting, so that memory will always be with us,” said Gilchrist, led the men’s national team to the 2017 FIBA AfroBasket.

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Following the demise of the PBL in the late 90s, South African basketball experienced a lull. While there were activities here and there, it’s safe to say there was not much to be excited about. That’s until the launch of the BNL in 2013, and for a short while, a renewed energy returned to the country’s basketball fraternity.

Gilchrist, who was in his 40s, made a return and again in the colours of the Marlins, who made it to the last four that year.

“It was an exciting time. I was 43 and dusted off the shoes because of the excitement. I was still playing competitively and wanted to get involved. It looked like the return of the PBL and that the sky would be the limit,” said Gilchrist.

The veteran coach reflected on their BNL playoff against the then Mbombela Wildcats (now the Mpumalanga Rhinos), which ended controversially.

“That semi-final… I still have the photograph of Sakhile Sithole scoring the layup with point one second left on the clock. The ref ran from the other side of the court to overrule it. So, that was a bit of a bitter pill to swallow, but these things happen,” said Gilchrist.

He would play for a couple more seasons before hanging up sneakers to focus on coaching the Marlins. This season the 2-1 Marlins are aiming for a second league title in the franchise’s history. With players like Bandile Nsele, Sibusiso Mabulala, Ben Myburgh and Skhumbuzo Mthembu the Marlins have the ability make some noise in the BNL.

“Naturally, the first prize is the championship. Our road is tough now because of our loss to the (Tshwane) Suns. We have the talent, but we have to iron out minor errors, and then we will be able to compete against anyone,” said Gilchrist.

Gilchrist, who is also an ardent surfer, knows about ebbs and flows, especially in South African basketball. While he yearns for the bygone years, he is in the present, and maybe his wisdom can rub off on this crop of Marlins players and inspire them to achieve greatness.