the other football

Sylvio Cator

Born in Cavaillon, Cator played for Trivoli Athletic Club and Racing Club Haitien.  Cator's skills were not limited to football.

 

He participated in the 1924 Paris Olympics in both the high jump and long jump and went on to claim the Silver mdeal in the Long Jump in the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics.  A month later, Sylvio claimed the World Record with a 7.93M jump in Paris.  His silver medal remains Haiti's best Olympic performance and his 1928 jump is still a Haitian record.

Cator was elected Mayor of Port-au-Prince in 1946. The Stade Sylvio Cator was named in his honour and completed in 1952, the year of his passing in Port-au-Prince.

Haiti's Goals

There have been goals in Benguela, Cabinda, Luanda and Lubango, but no goals are being scored in the Stade Slyvio Cator in Port au Prince.  Haiti's goalposts don't exist anymore.

Angolans paused for Haiti before every Quarter Final, the carnage of their own wars against colonialism and as proxies in the Cold War never far from their thoughts.  A nation blessed by the curse of geology showing solidarity with their brothers and sisters, torn asunder by the earth's crust, an ocean apart.

France, Britain and the United States have a history of moving Haiti's goalposts, naming and renaming Haiti's coach and officials, tightening the touchlines, painting countless penalty spots across Haiti's box, forcing Haitians to cheer from terraces made from shaky dumps of their own subsidized imports, with many supporters not able to read the terms and conditions of their own oppression as laid out in the match programme.

Haiti's goalposts don't exist anymore.  The smashed and mangled uprights belong to the "Humanitarians" now.  The Stade Slyvio Cator is a tent city with thousands crammed into the spaces once created by Haitian footballers.  There are no calls for the ball, but for water, medicines, medical attention and food.

Like the African Cup of Nations, Haiti's disaster is being broadcast across our globalized world.  The world knows more about the grain and scale of Haitian suffering than any calamity it has ever encountered. 

Our goal must be to help Haitians restore their own goalposts, and one day when Haitians are replenished with food, water, housing and control over their own lives, we can celebrate Haitian goals again.

Liceu Vieira Dias - N'gola Ritmos - Monami

While you're waiting for the Burkina Faso - Cote D'Ivoire match to kick off, here's a most beautiful Angolan intermission.

Confusão continua…

CAF have announced Togo will be disqualified if they do not materialize for the kick off of their fixture against Ghana tonight in Cabinda.

Rumours abound whether Botswana, The Republic of the Congo or Namibia will be invited to do a “Denmark”.

Cabinda’s separatist rebels, FLEC, have apologized for the attack, claiming it was a mistake to attack the Togolese, and have presented their condolences to the families of the deceased.

Pessimists supported by hustlers and vultures from the security and shock industry continue to make fear representations to the press about South Africa’s World Cup.

And it now seems Confusão has rubbed off on the Algerian defence, who are being torn to shreds by Malawi.

Arsène's Respect for Africa

The response to the attack on the Togolese team from much of the rabble that constitutes the English Premier League was predictable.  The emirs and oligarchs did not say much, leaving it to some of the old fashioned brass merchants to bellow about bringing their players "home".

Arsène Wenger was not of the same mind.  When asked if he wanted to bring his players back to Britain (where let's not forget Irish continuity forces still use the occasional bullet and bomb), Wenger was a beacon of sensibility and preferred to express his respect for Africa.

"We won't be asking Fifa to release them, and I'll be happy for Eboué to play in Cabinda on Monday," said Wenger. "I believe it would be disrespectful to Africa and the Africa Nations Cup [to bring them home]. You can't always encourage Africa to develop and if something happens say 'come back to Europe'."

 "I don't believe you can just stop any competition for any incident, because that would be a reward for the people who provoke these atrocities. It would mean any competition could be stopped at any time.  An international federation has to make sure the security is well respected and good enough for the event. Of course, you have to leave it individually to some players so that, if they feel insecure or scared, they have the possibility to come away from it. But I personally feel the competition has to go on."

The English game is richer not because of emirs and oligarchs, but because of men like Arsène Wenger who still live and breath football.

(I am sure some would like to trigger a discussion about Arsenal and other European clubs exploiting young African players.  We can have that another time.  Here, Wenger deserves credit for his optimism and confidence in Africa.)

Guns, Oil and Football

The intersection of oil and football has moved from a field in Fallujah to a Cabinda-Congo border crossing, where earlier today separatist rebels ambushed the Togolese team bus.

Terrified Togolese footballers told of how they dived to the deck of the bus as they were "machine-gunned like dogs".  The Angolan bus driver was killed and four others on the bus were wounded including the reserve goalkeeper, Kodjovi
Obilale (pictured in the Togo team photo above), and young midfield prospect, Serge Gakpé.

Les Eperviers are in state of shock and soundings taken from the players suggest they are unlikely to fulfill their fixtures.  Togo are scheduled to open their tournament against Ghana in Cabinda on Monday. 

You can expect a flurry of charges of corruption and references to atrocities dating all the way back to Berlin conference of 1884 (which set the borders for present day Angola, a year after Portuguese occupation of Cabinda).

No doubt the oil emirs and oligarchs who control the heights of English football will feel empowered to pipe up and demand the Africans return their human "property".  I fear there are probably no players of the calibre of Obdulia Varela around to respond.  I wonder what the great Uruguayan captain would make of being told to return to the ranch to drive a Range Rover around the Stamford Bridge Ice Rink for the viewers at home?  It will be interesting to see how Michael Essien and Didier Drogba respond tomorrow to the prospect of playing their 1st round fixtures in the Angolan enclave that is home to between 60% to 70% of Angola's oil.

The tournament will go on with or without Togo, but an excuse may have to be found for Cabinda.  It is now again as it once always was in Angola: "Confusão".  If only the great Kapuściński were still alive.  He might be tweeting from his android in rebel territory.

Emanuel Abebayor when interviewed by Andy Hunter of The Guardian in the days before he departed for tournament was fearless, as ever, "Some people might be afraid, which is normal, I can understand that.  But I'm going back to Africa, to one of the countries on my continent, and I'm prepared for Cabinda. I will enjoy myself. African nations are getting better and better. Angola had a big, big war but today everybody is getting along better. They have good organisation and we hope everyone will enjoy it and come back safely."

Our thoughts are with the family of the Angolan bus driver.

Adidas Puma Wars Slip into South Africa

The Adidas Puma war slipped into South Africa early in the new year.  Skirmishes were expected, though few would have predicted a Zulu Puma alliance.  Here's South African President Jacob Zuma showing he can kick it during his New Year wedding ceremony in the village of Nklandla.  His Excellency's hamstring came through a late fitness test, though his overall match fitness has never been in doubt.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year.  It promises to be a great year for football.  I'll doing what I can to share other football news, boos, tweets and views with y'all here and over at Football is Coming Home.  Watch out for my Uruguayan contributions for The Guardian.

At the End of the Storm

Another great bewk to get through you night, "At the End of the Storm" by Gary Shaw and Mark Platt.

 

I recently attended Liverpool's Boxing Day fixture with Liverpool legend, Flying Pig.  The match was more of the usual mind numbing modern stuff, save for a cracking Stubbins-like header from the Liverpool Captain.  It was also the first match my mother attended since my grandfather took her on the Paddock back in that title winning season of 1946-7. 

Thankfully, there was a serious session upstairs at the Salisbury before and after the sad excuse for football that has come to symbolize Liverpool these days.

A Season on the Drink

For those wanting a read about the other side of football, look no further than me arl mate, Johnny Mac's latest bewk, "Redmen: A Season on the Drink." 

Here's a little excerpt to get you calibrated.

"Aston Villa (a) 0-0, Sun. Aug 31st: No, modern football is fast turning into rubbish...There's only one immovable, unchanging Liverpool Way -- and that's us lot.  The fans.  We still, and always will, do it right.  It's 11 a.m.  I'm in a backstreet pub in Anfield watching a 5 year old girl in a pink frock, standing on a crate and pulling pints for half a dozen hardened Sunday morning drinkers.  She takes their tenners and does the till with an aplomb I can barely believe.  It's like a Fellini movie and I look outside hoping to spot The Pope leading a procession of naked nuns on zebras as confirmation.  Nope!  Just a steady drizzle.  I'm a bit early for the bus to Villa and take the opportunity for a quick bevy.  I'm of a mind to ask her for a vodka martini, just to see how good she is with the cocktail shaker, but think better of it.  Men have had pool cues crocked over their noggins in here for less."

You can buy "Redmen: A Season on the Drink" by Jegsy Dodd and John Mackin at all proper bewkstores or click here at Red Men Books.

Get that Man a Drink

Before I wish y'all Happy New Year I first want raise to toast to the great Ghiggia.  Folks over at Maracana choose the festive period to recall one of the darkest days in Brazilian football history, honouring Alcidies Ghiggia with a place in the stadium's Hall of Fame.

Here's the goal that won the cup.