Cosafa Cup gives Madibaz trio a glimpse into professional sport

Three members of the Madibaz Football Club were involved in the recent Cosafa Cup tournament in Gqeberha in various capacities. They are, from left, Karobo Madimola (media and communications), Elrio van Heerden (technical study group) and Tyrique Burger (

Three members of the Madibaz Football Club left the Cosafa Cup in Gqeberha wiser about the innerworkings of elite sport.

They were actively involved in the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations tournament in which Angola dismantled Namibia 5-0 in the final at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium earlier this month.

Madibaz head coach Elrio van Heerden, women’s team coach Karabo Madimola and club vice-chairman Tyrique Burger took part in different capacities.

Van Heerden was part of the technical study group (TSG), Madimola worked in the media division and Burger volunteered in a logistics role.

The TSG looked at various aspects of the teams’ involvement in the event, from respecting national anthems and their opponents to observing tactical trends in football.

“There was a lot of studying of the strategic flexibility of the players, looking at individual strengths, with and without the ball,” Van Heerden explained.

To help determine player of the match rewards, the skills and technique of the players were observed as well as how they contributed in terms of goals scored and assists.

The Madibaz mentor added that they also looked at the overall statistics of the teams, including shots on target, where and how most goals were scored as well as the execution of corners and set-pieces.

“In this way we were able to gain an idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the teams, both technically and tactically.”

Madimola, 21, and Burger, 20, took the opportunity to understand what went on behind the scenes when staging these tournaments.

Media, communications and culture student Madimola was recommended for a media job by former Madibaz football chairman Francis Makonese, who is now the executive director of Cosafa.

He worked alongside media officers, social media content creators and television staff from the SABC and Cosafa TV.

“Every three days I rotated to experience how things were in each department,” he said.

Madimola spent the bulk of his time with the media team, which gave him the chance to interview the coaches after games.

The Cosafa tournament gave him a broad overview of how the media operated at these events.

“It was great to see how things were done from a professional perspective in an environment that is very much part of my life.”

He also learnt that time-management was key.

“Everything is in order if you have rehearsed it well and if it was done in time. Mistakes are simply due to a lack of preparation.”

Burger, a second-year sports management student, landed a role as a volunteer after seeing a post by Cosafa head of competitions, Joshua Knipp, on X.

He was appointed assistant general coordinator and said there had been very little that did not fall under the job description.

“It was all about ensuring every aspect of the tournament went smoothly and that meant from when the teams landed in Gqeberha to . . . when they arrived for a match,” Burger said.

It also covered managing media sessions, looking after match logistics and training children to be flagbearers for the teams.

The experience was an “eye-opener” after only ever having had seen things from a fan’s perspective.

“I saw what was needed to make tournaments successful and am grateful for this exposure to something that I want to eventually make my career,” Burger said.

“To interact with . . . former Bafana players Mark Fish and Shaun Bartlett was awesome; it has shown me that there is a pathway for me in this sporting environment.”