U.S. CUP LEFT: ACE NTSOELENGOE BARTLETT (LEFT WITH MINNESOTA RETURNS TEAMMATE GEOFF BARNETT) TRIED TO MLS alumnus RETURN TO THE NASL Shaun Bartlett will ONE WINTER ONLY TO FIND captain South Africa at OUT THAT HIS NEW the Nike U.S. Cup. The PASSPORT WASN'T New England RECOGNIZED ABROAD. Revolution's Ivan McKinley is one of TOP RIGHT: THE SOUTH nine other foreign- AFRICAN MIGRATION TO based players called THE UNITED STATES BEGAN up by Coach Trott WITH KAIZER MOTAUNG, Moloto, who is using ONE OF THE PIONEERS OF the trip to prepare his THE NASL AND NOW team for the final OWNER OF THE MOST round of World Cup POPULAR TEAM IN SOUTH qualifying in Africa. AFRICA. The Bafana Bafana, whose roster is de- pleted by injuries and MIDDLE RIGHT: JOMO conflicts with the Bob SONO USED THE MONEY Save Super Bowl cup HE MADE PLAYING WITH final, opens up against THE NEW YORK COSMOS, Zimbabwe in July. COLORADO CARIBOUS Goalkeepers — AND TORONTO BUZZARD Andre Arendse (Ox¬ TO BUY THE BIGGEST CLUB ford United, England), IN JOHANNESBURG. Simon Gopane (Jomo Cosmos). Defenders BOTTOM RIGHT: FOR ROY — Pierre Issa WEGERLE (RIGHT IN (Marseille, France), ACTION AGAINST ENGLAND David Kannemeyer AT U.S. CUP '93), THE (Ajax Cape Town), UNITED STATES OFFERED A Jacob Lekgetho FAST TRACK TO THE (Moroka Swallows), WORLD CUP. Fabian McCarthy KEITH RANDOLPH (Bloemfontein Celtic), Aaron Mokoena (Ajax, Netherlands), Cyril Nzama (Umtata Bush Bucks), Andrew Rabutla (Jomo Cos¬ American soccer shapes mos), Andile Sixaba (Ajax Cape Town). Midfielders — Quinton Fortune (Manchester Utd., En¬ gland), Ivan McKinley South African game (New England Revolt tion, USA), Helman Mkhalele zard, came back to South Africa with his tling between the United States and South Africa, (Ankaragucu, Turkey), BY MARK GLEESON American earnings and bought the fran¬ playing for Chiefs in the early stages of the do¬ Thabo Mngomeni (Or¬ in Johannesburg chise of Highlands Park, the biggest mestic season, going off to the NASL, and then lando Pirates), Dumisa club in Johannesburg. returning invariably just in time to help his Soweto Ngobe (Ankaragucu, The Cosmos wore the white of their club take an end-of-season trophy. Turkey), Godfrey s in many other countries in the New York contemporaries and also "America taught me a lot about life and about Sapula (Jomo Cos¬ soccer world, the British first adopted their badge, although this has mos), Dillon Sheppard self-discipline," says the midfield maestro, now a brought soccer to South Africa. In been changed over the years. youth coach at Kaizer Chiefs. "It also gave me a (Ajax Cape Town), this case, it was the military, thou¬ Arthur Zwane (Clas¬ South African champion in 1987, the lot of self-belief. I rubbed shoulders with some of Asand s of miles from home fighting the sic). Strikers — club has been a perennial contender the great names of world football, and we went to Shaun Bartlett (FC Boers in the great gold grab before the turn of the ever since and looks set to finish among the top places like Italy and England to play preseason Zurich, Switzerland), 20th century. five when the domestic league ends in mid-June. warmup games." Delron Buckley An English colonial heritage still pervades The Orlando Pirates were started in the 1930s, ACE SUFFERS INDIGNITIES. The quiet- (Bochum, Germany), strongly through South African life, but it is the long before the connection with NASL, but even spoken Ntsoelengoe still had to suffer the indigni¬ George Americans whose stamp rests markedly on South they have Hollywood roots. The founding mem¬ ties of apartheid on his return, even if some of it Koumantarakis (Basle, Africa soccer. Switzerland), Patrick bers of the Soweto club were so enamored by was quiet comical. Mayo (Umtata Bucks). Chiefs, Cosmos, Pirates ... names that evoke Errol Flynn's acting in swashbuckling buccaneer "One trip," he recalls, "I had returned home great passion in the South African game and all movies of the day they chose the name and skull and sent my South African passport in for re¬ have their origins far over the Atlantic. and crossbones emblem. newal. Instead of giving it back, they sent me a The Chiefs are the product of Kaizer Motaung, KAIZER BUCKS SYSTEM. The political passport for Bophuthatswana, which made travel the first South African to play in the old NASL structures of South Africa in the 1970s and 1980 very difficult." who returned home to form his own club. gave little outlet for black achievement, the sti¬ Bophuthatswana was one of several Motaung had been Rookie of the Year with the fling effects of apartheid keeping opportunity to a "Bantustan" homelands created by the apartheid Atlanta Chiefs in 1967 and three years later set minimum and leaders and heroes on a tight lease. government in the 1970s for blacks but only about a defection from the Orlando Pirates to form Motaung's success in the initial years of the recognized as "independent" countries by the the Kaizer Chiefs, today the most popular club in NASL bucked this system, and the reports of his South African regime. They had their own gov¬ the country. prowess in the United States filled the pages of the ernments, capital cities, passports, stamps but no The Chiefs' emblem is still that of the old black press. border posts. Atlanta club, and they play in black and gold in Patrick "Ace" Ntsoelengoe and Jomo Sono, "I got to London with this Bop passport and front of legions of fans nationwide. arguably the two finest players produced by South naturally got stopped by the customs officer," POPPERFOTO Jomo Cosmos was formed in much the same Africa, were to take the mantle even further, Ntsolengoe says. "He said, 'Look here, Mister, DUMISA NGOBE way. Jomo Sono, who played for the New York making a name in North America. this passport is not international-recognized and Cosmos, Colorado Caribous and Toronto Bliz¬ Ntsoelengoe spent more than a decade shut- certainly not here.' I told him I wasn't going into www.socceramerica.com SOCCER AMERICA 12 JUNE 5, 2000 Because You're FANATIC! U.S. CUP SOUTH AFRICANS IN THE PROS There are 37 South Africans who have LUCAS MORIPE Year Club GP G played in the NASL and MLS. Two 1979 Chicago Sting 1 0 players—Andrew Parkinson (2 caps 1979 Minnesota Kicks 1 1 London, just in transit The best known of KAIZER MOTAUNG in 1984) and Roy Wegerle (41 caps Year Club GP G to the States. So they let all of these was Roy in 1992-98)— went on to represent 1968 Atlanta Chiefs 28 13 me stay in the airport Wegerle, a prodigious 1969 Atlanta Chiefs 16 16 the United States. 1971 Atlanta Chiefs 28 8 waiting for my connec¬ schoolboy sportsman 1974 Denver Dynamos 15 7 tion, but they put a po¬ who went to Florida but DES BACKOS 1975 Denver Dynamos 20 4 liceman with me to en¬ gave up college to join Year Club GP G ABEDNIGO NGCOBO 1977 Los Angeles Aztecs 25 4 Year Club GP G sure I caught the con¬ his elder brother Steve DICKIE BACKMAN 1975 Denver Dynamos 20 5 nection. He sat with me at the TampaBay Row¬ Year Club GP G 1976 Minnesota Kicks 3 0 while I had my break¬ dies in the last year of 1996 Tampa Bay Mutiny 30 0 PATRICK NTSOELENGOE 1997 Tampa Bay Mutiny 3 0 fast, and he was even the NASL in 1984. Year Club GP G SHAUN BARTLETT 1973 Miami Toros 9 3 pushing my trolley in Year Club GP G 1975 Denver Dynamo 21 10 S Pretoria-born the end!" 1996 Colorado Rapids 26 8 1976 Minnesota Kicks 25 7 Wegerle then played in 1997 Colorado Rapids 10 1 1977 Minnesota Kicks 23 3 JOMO THE BUC¬ England and won his 1997 MetroStars 13 2 1978 Minnesota Kicks 33 10 DYNAMO 1979 Minnesota Kicks 31 9 R HERMAN BLASCHKE CANEER. Ntsoelen- American citizenship 1980 Minnesota Kicks 34 13 Year Club GP G goe and Sono were to¬ before the 1994 World 1973 Miami Toros 10 1 1981 Minnesota Kicks 23 12 DENVE 1982 Toronto Blizzard 35 15 gether at the Toronto Cup finals, when South DAVID BYRNE 1983 Toronto Blizzard 12 3 Blizzard in 1982 but Africa had just returned Year Club GP G 1984 Toronto Blizzard 25 9 1980 Atlanta Chiefs 23 1 never played on the to international soccer. 1981 Atlanta Chiefs 30 3 ANDREW PARKINSON same team in an offi¬ In 1992, Wegerle 1982 Toronto Blizzard 35 10 Year Club GP G 1983 Toronto Blizzard 35 15 1980 Philadelphia Fury 24 3 cial game. could still have played 1984 Toronto Blizzard 24 13 1981 Montreal Manic 37 13 1982 Montreal Manic 18 8 "I was already, in for South Africa but felt RODNEY BUSH 1983 Team America 28 7 spring training in the prospect of playing Year Club GP G 1984 New York Cosmos 18 3 1980 San Diego Sockers 37 3 Florida when he ar¬ in the World Cup finals JOHN PASKIN LAWRENCE CHELIN Year Club GP G rived," says Ntsoelen- was worth choosing to Year Club GP G 1984 Toronto Blizzard 16 10 1981 Atlanta Chiefs 26 2 goe, "and we played a play for the United NEIL ROBERTS few times together States. MARTIN COHEN Year Club GP G Year Club GP G 1979 Atlanta Chiefs 19 14 there, but then we got "It wasn't a difficult 1977 Los Angeles Aztecs 26 3 1980 Tampa Bay Rowdies 28 10 injured and his granny choice because as hosts 1979 California Surf 25 0 1981 Tampa Bay Rowdies 25 2 was very sick back MIKE CONNELL 1982 Edmonton Drillers 13 5 the USA were already Year Club GP G 1982 Toronto Blizzard 18 12 home and he decided to qualified," Wegerle 1975 Tampa Bay Rowdies 24 1 1983 Toronto Blizzard 26 11 return.