In a list of one-club men comprising of ex-footballers from around the world who played their entire professional careers for only one club, there is one Isaac Shai. As a player, he only ever knew the smell of a Mamelodi Sundowns jersey. Starting out in 1992, the man with a sweet left foot went on to make more than 300 appearances for the Brazilians in a career that spanned over 12 years. He retired in 2004 having made many a memory. It was only fitting that the Tshwane giants roped him into their youth set-up so as to pass on his years of experience and football wisdom to the young ones at Chloorkop. Shai has been quietly going about his job, only letting his teams' achievements speak for themselves, and speak for themselves they did. Then suddenly, and without so much as a word of public explanation, he was let go. What happened? And what legacy has he left behind as he ponders his next move? Soccer Laduma's Masebe Qina sat down with the former left back who's not too 'Shai' to shoot from the hip…
Masebe Qina: Bra Isaac, for someone who was a professional footballer for so long, how did you find the transition into coaching?
Isaac Shai: The transition from playing into retiring from professional football is not an easy thing to do. I guess one has to accept the situation beforehand so as to prepare your mind and all that. Once you know that it is getting closer to that time, it's better to accept that it will be happening and start aligning your body and mind into it. That's the only thing I could do, to speak to my body and adjust my mind into it because the body was no longer allowing me to carry on. I told myself that in the next adventure, I would be getting into coaching. But to summarise it for you and to tell any footballer out there who might be seeking advice, it is that quitting is not an easy decision to make. Some players are usually caught in-between when they have to make the decision on whether they should go for coaching or go for a role in football administration and things like that. The thing is we can't all be coaches after our playing careers are over. As much as some of us have made it into coaching, others are team managers, scouts and so on. That's why it is important that one makes the right decision on the direction to take so as not to regret it in the long run.
MQ: How did you decide that coaching was what you wanted?
IS: Well, as someone who was familiar with only one football club in my professional career and that is Mamelodi Sundowns, I couldn't say no when I got an opportunity to give back to the team as a coach. The club had just roped in Khabo Zondo to be the Head of the Academy and he was the one who advised me to consider retirement. It was after Mr. Patrice Motsepe had taken over as the club's new owner. His (Zondo's) concern was that if I was to leave Sundowns as a player to try my luck elsewhere, some clubs might have wanted to take advantage of me by cutting my salary and things like that. Yes, there were teams that were interested and needed my experience, but the concern was that they wouldn't be able to pay me. I agreed to get into coaching, and I worked under coach Khabo alongside the late Joas Magolego, who was another one who had just retired. At a later stage, we were joined by the late Thomas "Who's Fooling Who" Hlongwane. May their souls rest in peace.
MQ: Is there anything you'd change about your playing career if you were to go back?
IS: I don't have any regrets about my career as I played my part in the growth and success of the club. I did all I could and if you can look back to when I called it quits, I think Thabiso Rammile had just joined Sundowns as the new left back and (Paul) Dolezar made it clear to me that I was no longer in his plans. The way Thabiso and the other youngsters who were up-and-coming were doing so well made my decision to stop playing easy because I was happy with what I was seeing in them, and I had no doubt in my mind that the future was bright. Those boys were talented, strong and I was confident that they would make it. Into eng'chazile (What I liked the most) was that Sundowns offered me an opportunity to give back to the club by coaching the younger ones in the development. The club planned for continuity ukuthi ngiqhubeke ngikhulele ekhaya (so that I could continue growing at home) like I am saying that in my professional career I only know of Sundowns as the club I played for. I will forever be grateful to the club for the opportunity.
MQ: What was it like starting your coaching career at Downs?
IS: It was enjoyable, but it was not easy because I remember that soon after we started, there were coaching changes at the club. As the years went by, other former players and legends of the club, like Godfrey Sapula and Surprise Moriri, were also roped in to work in the development and that was good to see. But the journey of coaching was not easy as the academy kept growing and the demands for success were getting higher and higher. I remember there was a time when we were competing with other top academies like those of SuperSport United, Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates, Bidvest Wits, School of Excellence and others, and we were getting beaten left, right and centre. There were also school tournaments which we participated in, and the expectation was that we won and dominated everywhere through our partnership with Clapham High School from Pretoria. I remember we used to be sponsored by Nike and Nike used to complain when Sundowns didn't do well in the Nike Cup. We were new in the set-up and were still getting to familiarise ourselves with the rules and regulations and how things were being done, and therefore we learnt the hard way.
MQ: Talk about creating the new Isaac Shais of this world…
IS: Having said that, I learnt so many things in youth coaching in a short space of time. In youth coaching, you've got to have an eye for talent, be able to profile them for the talent they possess, their lifestyle, background and so on. You must be sure about all the details, and that is where they come from in terms of provinces, which schools did they go to, what kind of lifestyle were they exposed to in their schools, would they be able to adjust to the lifestyle in Gauteng if they were selected to move … and all those details. I was coaching the U15 team. For some of the boys that age,, it meant that they were leaving their homes and parents for the first time to change into a different province. They were changing school for the first time and for them, that on its own can mean a lot of challenges. There were a lot of things that we dealt with outside of football and it was a process. Be that as it may, I still enjoyed coaching at youth level at Sundowns and teaching the boys about the game at the different tournaments that we competed in. I remember if a team won the Nike Cup, there was an international tournament that you would go to as part of the prize. That's the tournament that earned us a trip to Manchester on two occasions, in 2014 and 2015 respectively. We won the Coca Cola tournament five times in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively, provincially and nationally.
MQ: Your recent departure from the Brazilians came as a surprise for many who have been following your work.
IS: The message I got was that we were not competent enough together with the guys I left with. That's what I heard, and those were the exact words used, but when you check the history and the trophies that I brought to the club, the players that I coached, it's a different story. Some of the players I coached are still playing in the DDC (DStv Diski Challenge) and others first-team football even if in other teams. I was shocked with what was said, but I think it was time for us to part ways. I wouldn't want us to dwell on what was said about being incompetent because I know what I did and achieved with the club. For me, that is an understatement because I doubt anyone can back that up with facts. The results I got with the boys I coached speak for themselves. I remember when we won the Nike Cup in 2014, we beat Pirates 3-1 in the final. In 2015, we beat Pirates again after scoring another three goals, and Pirates at the time had some good players in their development and they were under the mentorship of Augusto "Professor" Palacios. I can't forget those years because I remember there was an international tournament that we participated in which featured some of the top academies from around the world, including Real Madrid, Manchester United, Club Brugge and Asante Kotoko, among others.
MQ: You say the message you got was that you were not competent enough. Where did it come from?
IS: From some of the leaders of the club, and I wouldn't want to mention them by their names. It was some of the people who worked in the office and were there to do exactly that job of evaluating coaches.
MQ: Those words must have hurt.
IS: I was surprised because before I was called into the office, I had been in Cape Town with the team for the Kapstadt Cup. I had just won that cup with the U17 team and I remember it was in December. In January, I then got the news that umsebenzi sewuphelile (I no longer had the job). I was shocked, but you can't fight something like that if they felt that it was the way to go.
MQ: Then there's an interesting story that includes coach Rhulani Mokwena.
IS: Yes. I remember when we played in that international tournament, coach Rhulani was my assistant. At the time, he had already been coaching the U19 team, but because he was experienced, the club decided that he and Wendell Robinson should come join me in the U15 team for that tournament. Wendell helped with the goalkeepers. The tournament was hosted in Manchester, and we were there representing South Africa. That tournament was an eye-opener for me and I learnt a lot about how other countries do things when it comes to football development. From what I saw there, I could tell that we were still behind as a country when it came to football development and all things to do with professionalism at youth level. The way they take their academies so serious is amazing and that is why it isn't rare there to find a 20-year-old player playing in the Champions League or in the World Cup without any fear. I'm weighing my options and planning to bounce back elsewhere. I've used the time I had away from football to acquire more coaching badges as part of planning my comeback. I'm a holder of a CAF C Licence, SAFA Level 1 and 2 coaching courses and I did a Sports Management course through Boston College. I plan on doing CAF B and A licences going forward because as a coach, if you don't keep up with the times, you will be left behind. Modern football requires a lot of changes on how things are done and those that are not equipping themselves will be left behind. As coaches, empowering ourselves is vital.
MQ: Grootman, football needs people as passionate as you, and so we hope to see you back in the dugout soon. Thanks for talking to us about the developments in your coaching career and we wish you all of the best.
IS: Thanks so much, Tata (Sir).
