Ted gets tough
By Tony Mashati
JOHANNESBURG – Bafana Bafana coach Ted Dumitru revealed an iron fist on Thursday when he axed former captain Aaron Mokoena from his training squad ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
Mokoena was replaced as South African captain by Sibusiso Zuma this week after Dumitru asked the players to vote for their preferred skipper.
Mokoena, meanwhile, arrived in the country on Wednesday morning from England where he plays for Blackburn Rovers.
He asked Dumitru if he could have the afternoon off because he wanted to visit his family in Sebokeng.
“The players had trained very hard for the last few days, so I decided to give them Wednesday afternoon off,” said Dumitru.
“Naturally I allowed Mokoena to go and see his family. But I made it clear to all of them that they had to be back by 7pm, but to my disappointment Aaron didn’t return to camp,” he said.
As a result, said the coach, Mokoena had been dropped.
Dumitru said he was disappointed with Mokoena’s attitude.
“He hasn’t been playing for Rovers lately and I thought that he would have been eager to prove his match fitness to me, but in his absence I will just have to find a replacement for him,” said Dumitru.
It is difficult to believe that Mokoena’s disappearance is not linked to his loss of the captaincy.
“What Aaron should remember is that the days of begging players to represent the national team are over,” said Dumitru. “We will only select those who show the country respect and are determined to do what’s best for South Africa.”
Mokoena did not respond to phone calls yesterday but told the Kick-off website that he was waiting for Dumitru to call him.
“There are issues here. Until they contact me I can’t do anything,” he said.