A good coach can change a game, but a great coach can change a life. This quote suits John Moseki Seitlholo perfectly, because when you think about a great coach, John automatically comes to mind.
John, a messenger by occupation at the North-West University’s School of Human and Movement Sciences, is also the head coach of the Ten Stars Football Club in Potchefstroom. He started the club in 2000 and called it “Ten Stars” because his aim was to turn young kids into future soccer stars and help them to better their lives.
Laduma!
In 2010, they were the first team to win the Madiba Cup. The prize money was a total of R6 000 and that just motivated them to keep on playing their best game.
A total of 66 players currently plays for the team in three different divisions namely U/15, U/19, and U/21. The Ten Stars Football Club was one of the last 32 teams participating in the Nedbank Cup in 2016. They were the only team from the Dr Kenneth Kaunda region.
John also coached the NWU’s Laureus men’s residence soccer team for a year where they competed in the hostel league games. Under his leadership, they progressed from 14th to seventh position.
Football is referred to as “the beautiful game“, but for John, this beautiful game isn’t always without challenges. “We don’t always have the necessary funding, especially when we have to travel and play against other soccer teams. I often have to go from house to house to ask for donations,” says John.
Investing in people
John says that he started this team as a way of giving back to the community.
A majority of the children in the club come from poverty-stricken backgrounds. “I always wanted to do something to help and motivate the youth. Since these kids are from disadvantaged backgrounds, they can easily revert to crime and drugs and I want to prevent that,” John says.
John is a former soccer player himself which adopted the nickname “Ten Ten”. He is married and has two sons and two grandchildren. He describes his grandchildren as his reason for living because they give him so much joy. “We may not be rich and famous, but our grandchildren are priceless,” he says.
Support on the home front
John is an avid churchgoer and faithful believer, with soccer as his only hobby. “I always thank God for my wife, because I could not have done this without her. There have been times when I had to use some of our household money for the team, yet through it all, she remained patient and supportive. My plan for the coming soccer season is to work extremely hard to realise our dream of playing in the Vodacom league. It would bring me so much joy if we can get the necessary funding to assist us throughout the process.”
The bigger picture
The Faculty of Health Sciences recently had very successful discussions with coach John about his passion to make a positive difference in young people’s lives. “The Faculty of Health Sciences are privileged to be able to also contribute our expertise towards John’s project. We will register this initiative as an official community engagement project which will allow us to offer much-needed assistance with regard to funding, clothing, equipment, transport and the general well-being of these players. Each year, more than 300 international athletes choose the NWU’s sport facilities as “home base” for their pre-season training, and our sport scientists are among the best in the world. We take it upon ourselves to utilise our infrastructure, support structures and expertise to further develop these players into well rounded, passionate youth,” Prof Awie Kotze, Executive Dean of the Faculty said.
The formal involvement of the NWU will create a platform where our local youth would benefit in personal sport development on a sustainable basis. Discussions are currently underway to explore various opportunities for these soccer players.
Coach John Moseki Seitlholo eats, lives and breathes soccer.
