As a player, Benni McCarthy knew how to get the ball in the back of the net. As a coach, he’s showing the same conviction.
Under the unforgiving glare of the Western Cape sky, dazzling even on an overcast September day like a cold grey spotlight, a frenetic game of kick volleyball is poised at 9-8. On a humble practice pitch near the imperious Cape Town Stadium, the players cajole their effervescent talisman as he skews his ambitious scissor kick just outside the line. This is Benni McCarthy, one of the finest footballing talents the continent has ever produced, and the new manager of Cape Town City FC.
We’re minutes from a Monday afternoon City FC press conference, and McCarthy is wrapping up training with a lighthearted warm-down. He has just led his team to the MTN8 cup final by beating Wits, the reigning league champions (Cape Town City FC lost in the final to Supersport United, coached by McCarthy’s former teammate Eric Tinkler). Wits are managed by Gavin Hunt, McCarthy’s coach two decades earlier at Seven Stars, where the 17-year-old striker began his playing career. McCarthy is unbeaten after a fifth win in succession since the start of the season. Spirits are high. Squad players relax with a PlayStation game as a posse of journalists assemble in an anteroom next to the main arena. It’s an unusually big attendance for a press conference for a South African Premier Soccer League (PSL) side – but this is an unusual club.
This story is from the December 2017 - January 2018 edition of Forbes Africa.
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This story is from the December 2017 - January 2018 edition of Forbes Africa.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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