IF South African football had its way, Ramahlwe Mphahlele should be put out to pasture. He will be 35 by the end of the upcoming season. Too old, many would say.
It is a local football status quo that saddens the AmaZulu rightback. A status quo Mphahlele believes is robbing South Africa of the necessary experience that would see the game being played at an even much higher level than it currently is.
As he prepares to go into his 18th season in the elite league, Mphahlele lamented the myopic view held by most clubs – whether it is the club owners or coaches he cannot say – that players are too old once they reach 32.
“Look, it’s not nice,” Mphahlele said recently during an interview at an event where Usuthu received new vehicles from their sponsors Mitsubishi Motors.
“As a player you know very well that as you grow older that’s when you feel more comfortable; you have more experience and you feel you can help so much on and off the field. But there is this paradigm that’s going on that says if you are over 30 they start writing you off, for me it is a big worry in South Africa. It is sad to be honest.”
One of few players to have represented the country at all age levels – under-17, under-20, under 23 and senior – the man from Ga-Mphahlele in Limpopo is pained by seeing quality players being clubless.
“It is very sad because you have so many players, good players, who can still play. You look at what happened to Tower (Erick Mathoho) at Kaizer Chiefs. Where is Tower? Where is Sibusisio Vilakazi? Where is (Sifiso) Hlanti? Where is Kermit (Erasmus)? These are good players. These are very good players but where are they now? Because ‘oh they are over 30 now’ (let’s retire them). It is very sad, not something to smile about. But ja, it is football. What can we say?”
He shared examples of international players being allowed to continue to play irrespective of their age and how they are doing well.
“If Pepe can play until 40, Cristiano until 40, Thiago Silva until 40 and Azpilicueta is on 36 whatever the case might be. But look at the likes of Mshishi (Mamelodi Sundowns’ Themba Zwane) who – for me – is one of the best players we have in south Africa but now that he starts reaching 33 and 34, they start calling him old. For me the mentality of us South Africans doesn’t make sense.”
Mphahlele believes the adage “age is nothing but a number”, should be applied to the game. The key, he says, should be a player’s ability to contribute to the club.
“It shouldn’t matter how old you are as long as you can still deliver. That should be the most important thing – age, colour, this and that – those things don’t matter. (The) Most important is ‘can you deliver?’ Can you help the team? If you can’t help the team then they can justify it (sending a player out to pasture) by your performance. But now you are being judged and sidelined because of age. That’s a sad thing.”
Mphahlele says local clubs need to learn to see the value of experienced players.
“Such players help the youngsters to grow because there are certain obstacles that they will face and if you are a senior player you are not just there to play but there to help the youngster; to help the team because you can’t have a team full of youngsters.
“Sure, you will win some but there will be moments when you need the senior guys to guide you, to say hey ‘we have been here before and this is how it should be done’.
“Like I said, I don’t know whether it is the club owners or the coaches who decide. But there are a lot of players who are over 32 (years of age) who are clubless (but can be making a positive contribution still).
“To be honest, I think it weakens our league a bit when you only have youngsters. You have to try and mix it up, because the senior players can help the younger players.”
He is one of the lucky ones to still be considered worthy of a contract and he believes it is a blessing.
“Football people say it is a short career and they are right. So, for one to be in the game for so long then you need to be very disciplined and also flexible in terms of adjusting and adapting because every season there are new dynamics, new players.
“So for me, I can just pin it (his longevity) down to God’s grace first. And then there’s me being disciplined. I try to stay out of trouble. I take care of myself, my body and my job. Those are what I can pin my longevity on.”
A former Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs star, Mphahlele’s decision to join Usuthu in 2022 surprised many. But he says he needed a new challenge.
“I didn’t just want to be at one team for the rest of my life. I wanted to explore. I wanted to face new challenges. I wanted to try new things. I wanted to gauge myself in different cities. And the difference is there obviously – coming from your Sundowns and your Chiefs, the level and the kind of expectations from the fans is different. But AmaZulu are a big team in KZN (KwaZulu-Natal) and we have a responsibility to try and rule the city (province) and do well for this club.”
He laments the fact that some players appear to have no clue of the club’s stature in the country.
“I feel like we are not aware of how big this club is and people come in and they are not aware how big AmaZulu is in South Africa – it is one of the biggest clubs in South Africa, so it is our responsibility to put it where it belongs. It is a big challenge but a challenge worth us taking it.”
And he believes that the fact they are still with the same coach and the majority of the players from the previous campaign, this season should be one which Usuthu are competitive.
“There’s continuity, so we’ve got no excuse not to do well. We have to pull up our socks, work harder and live up to the expectations that the fans have. This is the season we should just go out there and try to dominate and try to win games and do it to the best of our ability.”
And you can bet he will be giving his all in every match, not slacking because he is ‘old’.