14 Oct 2018

For all its glorious and chequered past, Tafic Sporting Club officially boasts of 180 registered supporters who pay P100 monthly subscriptions.

Tati African Federation Independent Club aka ‘Matjimenyenga Boys,’ whose motto is undipe ndi kupe has over the years been beset by a myriad of management challenges which have overshadowed its performance in the field.

Currently, the club which in the past produced legends in the likes of Mmoloki ‘BB’ Sechele, Wrist Mmusi, Matoni Mudzingwa,Tumie Duiker, Carlos Tawana, the late Nobody ‘Jomo’ Mosweu and Leornard ‘Hero’ Matenge is engaged in a process of cleansing itself of the demons that have arrested its success.

This is a sad state of affairs for a club that has been in existence since 1959. To change the club’s fortunes around, a new management committee was recently elected to resuscitate and restructure the club which was once the pride of the north and take it back to the country’s elite football league, the BTC premiership.

The club’s new chairperson, Carlos Sebina, an entrepreneur, has explained that what Tafic lacks was not support or funding but rather a proper management structure that would allow a culture of good governance to thrive.

He echoed these sentiments during a media briefing held to give an update on what the new committee has been seized with since assuming office, and on preparations for the Debswana First Division North league which resumed recently.

The club chairperson explained that for the club to have ability, it has to sort out the manner in which it handles its finances, an issue which motivated them to open new bank accounts when they took over.

One of the things they grappled with, he added, was to find out factors that contributed to Tafic’s relegation from the BTC premiership in the past immediate season.

 “We were very good in terms of play and had players who could secure our survival in the league,” he said. 

Sebina mentioned that one of the things that they identified was that in the past, even when there was a committee, the running of the team became the burden of only four people being the chairperson, secretary, technical manager and the treasurer. 

This, he asserted, created a problem and called for the restructuring of management and the addition of new positions to ensure that responsibilities were spread to a wide pool of officials. 

According to Sebina, restructuring at Tafic was necessary to improving reporting lines and avoid duplication of roles in the management of the club.

He also asserted that restructuring would help the team in that officials would focus on their roles to create a seamless partnership between committee members.

Consequently, he maintained that while the supporters have always played a key role within the club, their link to the club was disjointed.

“We had a situation in the past where player welfare issues were relayed to the secretary general, while supporters committees also dealt with issues that should have been handled by the welfare manager,” he noted. 

As a way to professionalise the club, Sebina noted that Tafic has to take time to sort its management structure if it was to avoid the cyclical promotion and immediate relegation from the elite league which has become its characteristic feature.

For a club of its size, Sebina said it was disheartening to have so few registered members, noting that the numbers do not warrant the club to be called a football giant.

The import of his argument, he highlighted, was not to say his predecessors did nothing to take the club forward, rather, he mentioned that his committee’s mission was to develop sustainable management strategies that had the potential to yield long term success.

In an attempt to build a formidable management structure which could translate into success in the field of play, the chairperson posited that the club has come up with ways to come up with proper management procedures.

Sebina also mentioned that they wanted to focus on partnerships that could assist Tafic to generate income rather than relying on begging for funding every season.

Consequently, he said the club has roped in the services of a legal advisor, a head coach, Elias Chinyemba, assistant coach, Lovemore Mokweetsi, goalkeeper coach Wrist Mmusi and 27 players to prepare for the upcoming First Division North season.

When they relegated, he noted that they managed to retain 16 players who have been helpful in identifying new players for the team. 

Going forward, the chairperson explained that they would like to have a development side rather than relying on recruiting players from outside Francistown.

Sebina noted that they want to start a cup competition for all the 20 primary schools in Francistown to assist the assistant coach in collaboration with the Tafic Masters to scout for talent. 

While some supporters have been generously donating to the club over the years, the Tafic chairperson noted that the club has not done enough to attract and retain them.

“Individuals have been assisting us, but we have not been giving anything back in return,” he added.

 As a way of attracting registered supporters, Sebina informed the media that the club wanted to make the membership card attractive and to be in the form of a Visa card.

He explained that negotiations with a commercial bank were at an advanced stage and highlighted that the membership package would include an insurance product.

Based on the negotiations they have had with supporters and various stakeholders since assuming the reigns, he said that they want to have registered 20 000 members by January 2019.

He also said they would be targeting group memberships, including those from companies. Currently, he noted that 35 000 individuals have expressed a desire to register for Tafic membership.

“We will be selling funeral policies, gym membership, shop and transport discounts to our registered supporters,” he asserted. 

As part of the restructuring exercise, Sebina explained that Tafic has to go back to the basics and apologise to the team’s supporters who had stood by the club during difficult periods over the years. 

The chairperson mentioned that the committee had a seminar with the business community where they apologised and sold their vision as a way of nurturing new partnerships.

Sebina highlighted that the club currently has new club house at Water Hole, which is located at the Francistown Club. 

Tafic, he mentioned, has to be involved in community projects to improve its visibility in the city. 

“We have been begging a lot without giving anything back to the community,” he said.

He also explained that they now have club offices courtesy of sponsorship from Kadesh Security which would run for 24 months.

Consequently, he observed that they managed to conduct medical examinations for their players with the assistance of Francistown Clinic.

These moves, he noted, were a step in the right direction as they fulfilled requirements for club licensing. As a way of alleviating their financial burdens, Sebina noted that they would intensify the adopt-a-player strategy for companies and individuals to assist the clubs in paying player salaries. 

This, the chairperson maintained, would eliminate the situation which used to happen in the past where players were secretly paid outside the club’s management structures.

When they took over, he observed that they found player salary arrears amounting to P82 000 which they were working on paying off. 

On other issues, Sebina said Tafic could only do well if there was discipline within the team, noting that one of the sources of concern over the years was failure by the club to attend pre-match meetings. 

The absence of Tafic in the league, he highlighted, was hitting clubs in the BTC premiership hard as they were losing out on revenue in Francistown.

The delay in starting the league, he highlighted, has been a blessing in disguise for his team as they managed to sort themselves out and bolstered their squad.

He also said that they were close to sealing the technical sponsorship deal soon, noting that after consultations they would engage in rebranding the club. 

Tafic’s vice chairperson, Carlos Motaung also shared with the media that when they were elected, the club did not have an office and had lost many players who left for greener pastures. 

Tafic, he noted, was a big brand in Francistown and also highlighted that the presence of an office brought stability as administration was settled.

Furthermore, Mr Motaung explained that getting relegated came with extra costs as they lost their coach.

He also mentioned that they have in the past had problems with establishing relations with stakeholders, however, he asserted that the current committee has prioritised stakeholder engagement. 

First Division North secretary general, Rapula Gaotlhobogwe applauded the club for working towards complying with club licensing requirements. ENDS