Dirang Moloi: The maestro who ran away from football

TSHIRELETSO MOTLOGELWA
Staff Writer | Friday November 23, 2007 00:00

 

On several occasions, Premier League giants Notwane had to send out a search party for him. From the early days, the sensational midfielder was a very reluctant footballer.

Indeed, it is pressure from his peers and mentors that made sure he was never lost to the game. However, watching the Zebras' midfielder in action, it is very difficult to believe that was once a very reluctant footballer. It is a sight to behold when he brings a high ball down to the ground. He exhibits the elegance of a gazelle and the aura of a genius lost in holy communion with his generous talent. He jumps with his chest out and momentarily freezes in mid-air with his eyes on the ball. His chest recoils to hug the ball as it rolls downwards to the foot or, specifically to the tip of his boot.

He is not in a hurry when he is on the ball. He is a man on his own schedule. He is so perfect that he does not want to be derailed by anything. Many an opponent who have tried to hurry him have found themselves embarrassed by his superb control and vision.

Last Saturday Batswana, at the National Stadium, in TV lounges around the country and in restaurants and pubs got to see the 'Witch' do what he does best. Dictating the pace of a game and orchestrating dangerous moves from the midfield. At the end, Morocco had to rue the space they allowed him or rather the acres of space he created for himself. He threaded two killer passes that saw the Under-23 national team down Morocco 2-0 in the penultimate qualifier for the 2008 Olympic Games.

If Dirang likes to remain anonymous, as his welfare manager Bashi Kgakge says, then he is not successful. After the Morocco game, the media glare and admiration from football fans has been intense, perhaps a bit too much for the shy and reclusive playmaker, who previously attracted attention for the wrong reasons. Unlike his peers, Moloi was not always as excited about the game he plays so well. He has always been a reluctant participant but those around him perhaps realising the immensity of his talent, have been much more interested in his full involvement. Then there is the pressure from his elder brother, Pontsho, currently one of the country's big name footballers. 'As early as primary school (Ben Thema, Gaborone), I was always not interested in playing football but I always played because ultimately I would have to bow to some pressure to do so,' he explains. In the mid-1990s when Ben Thema's team was campaigning in the Chappies Little League, it was pressure from Mochudi Centre Chiefs striker Mpho Mabogo, who at the time was coach of the small boys which forced Dirang to play.

Years later the pressure came from the headmaster of Moselewapula who whipped the boy in front of fellow students for absconding from a game. 'The school team had lost with some wide margin, I think five or seven nil. Something like that. That Monday morning I was called to the front and whipped,' Moloi says with a naughty laugh. 

He confesses that he found the football he played in the dusty grounds around Broadhurst was much more fulfilling. The trappings of street vagrancy also beckoned. 'I liked street gambling and dices. Those were my major obsessions and I found school football to be meaningless. You could not get paid from it,' he adds.

Moloi formed a formal relationship with football when he started playing for a neighbourhood team called Young Strikers.

However, his talent would sooner or later attract the interest of Premier League giants, Notwane. 'I was a headache for their coach Lawrence Phiri. He would sit me down and try to get me to be more interested in football but I never attended practice sessions consistently. They always had to come looking for me, while I would hide away,' he recalls. But the coach always fielded the young boy whenever the search team caught up with him.

At the national level the coaches were patient with him too. He played for the national Under-17, under the stewardship of Oris Radipotsane and Under-20 under Sthanda Mogwadi. He recalls the times with Radipotsane; 'O ne a rata bolo e tshamekiwa rra. O ne a rata kgwele e feta e sa eme' (He liked the passing game) and of Mogwadi he says, 'O ne a dumela mo lebelong. O ne a dumela gore stamina ke sone sone. That was very useful (He liked to work on stamina)'. It would seem the coaches always believed in Moloi not just long before he did so himself but even more than he did. Coaches seem to give him special attention.

This was shown by the occasional Under-23 national coach David Bright over the weekend. Whenever the team went for pep talk, Bright always wanted Moloi in front of him. He gave the player the most attention. Moloi denies that he does not take the Under-23 side seriously.

'I play for both teams but if the schedule clashes, I prefer to play for Zebras for the simple reason that it gives me the much-needed international caps.

To sign abroad, you must have international caps and the more the better. However, whenever I do have a chance, I play for the Dream Team because it gives me practice and also you never know who might be in attendance,' he explains. He says that sometimes, a deal is just a game away.

He says Zebras' coach Colwyn Rowe has been important in his national team career. 'Rowe is the best coach I have worked under and I find it difficult that the media do not seem to see this. We the players never complained about his ability because he is excellent,' he adds. Mochudi Centre Chiefs' defender Tshepo 'Talk Talk' Motlhabankwe agrees that Rowe is a good tactician.

'He is the best. That man knows football at a very high level and his methods are superb,' Motlhabankwe says. Rowe, like every coach Dirang has worked under, is quick when it comes to mentoring a player.