Respect is earned: From Seagal's disaster to Chelsea's apathy to the PSL's governance crisis

IOL News

3 days ago

Thulani Hlatshwayo of Supersport United is challenged by Gladwin Shitolo of Golden Arrows during their Betway Premiership clash at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Thursday. BackpagePix
Image: Backpagepix
Have you ever watched Attack Force? Consider yourself lucky if you haven't.
It's a mid-2000s Steven Seagal movie that shows almost no respect for the medium. Seagal plays the commander of some elite US unit, murdered by — who knows what...
Genetically modified soldiers? Perhaps. Aliens? Possibly. Vampires? By the end, it seems that way.
In any event, Seagal looks uninterested — checked out — when he's on camera, which isn't for very long. About halfway through the incoherent mess, Seagal buggers off, having clearly decided he had better things to do with his life. From then on, body doubles, voice-overs, dubbed sections and stand-ins draped in shadow take over his role.
It's so bad, it's comical.
Watching the first half of Chelsea's performance on Wednesday night in the UEFA Europa Conference League final at the local pub against Real Betis dredged up similar feelings of confusion. It was somewhat clear — the starting XI confirming it — that the Blues had almost no respect for the match.
It was a torrid first stanza from Enzo Maresca and his charges as they laboured to stifle a highly motivated Los Verdiblancos. The Blues improved immensely when Reece James was subbed on early in the second half. That change seemed to allow Cole Palmer and the front line to play their natural game with confidence.
In any event, you'd expect a R24 billion-assembled side to squash one not even worth a fraction of that — and eventually, that's just what Chelsea did. Although it ended in a comfortable 4-1 victory, it could have been much smoother had the Londoners respected the moment and their opposition from the start.
Sadly, the kind of disengagement seen on the pitch on Wednesday is not just a European problem — it's mirrored, more worryingly, in our own football ecosystem.
Respect.
I've been thinking about it a lot these past few weeks, especially in relation to football — and more specifically, our local game. It seems to be withering away by the week.
It feels to me that the PSL have lost respect for their own brand, the clubs, the players and the fans. There's no arguing that this past season has been a messy affair.
The Royal AM saga embarrassed the league and their stakeholders for far too long. An immediate response was required, but it never came. As soon as SARS got involved in managing that debacle, the Premiership's administrators should have expelled the club.
In February, SuperSport United and Golden Arrows couldn't complete their game due to loadshedding. Three months later — with the league puzzle mostly solved, but still missing a critical piece — they finally completed the game this past Thursday.
In the NFD, arbitration is still trying to resolve who will be promoted to the elite division and who will be relegated to the third tier.
It's been almost a fortnight since the league concluded, and we still don't know who will be going up, nor who will contest the PSL promotion/relegation play-offs, which was scheduled to start last week.
There has also been too much fan hooliganism — a slap on the wrist here and there — and a disturbing tendency toward inaction. Match officiating, meanwhile, has come under increasing scrutiny.
I can appreciate that these are complicated matters to resolve and that such complex problems are not limited to South Africa, but right now, self-interest seems to be driving decisions within the league. That, ultimately, stems from a lack of transparency and open governance.
A world-class league cannot be managed in such a way — not if it wants to project success and prestige, not if it wants the respect of its peers.
The PSL cannot afford to check out and hope their name — its mere whisper of a presence — will sell the show.
If they want to command respect, they must start by showing it: through decisive action, proper governance, and a return to basics.