Self‑funded programme beacon of hope for Missionvale youth

Driven by his love for football, Zolani Swelindawo has transformed his passion into a lifeline for Missionvale children, creating a haven where young talents can shine and be noticed.

Swelindawo, 39, left his home in Whittlesea 18 years ago bound for Gqeberha to pursue his football dreams.

And while his stint as a player produced modest results, his performance as a champion of the youth in Missionvale with limited resources is inspiring.

All the while, he has refused to let financial hurdles stall his vision.

“In 2008, after finishing matric and struggling to find a job, I was invited by someone to join Missionvale Eleven FC,” Swelindawo said on Tuesday.

“Because he was genuinely interested in my football potential, I decided to join his team. During that period, the team was competing in the Northern Areas Football Association.

“But since I didn’t have a stable job, I returned home to Whittlesea.

“A few months later, I received another call from him, and he said I needed to return to play in Gqeberha, and he would help find me a job.

“While I was playing for the senior team, I decided to start a junior team for them, and that’s how the development programme began.

“Seeing the situation and environment that children in Missionvale lived under was the reason I formed the junior team.

“I noticed that Missionvale was lagging in sports development, and the area’s biggest issues included gang violence, school dropouts, and drug and alcohol abuse from a young age.

“Those are the challenges I was trying to shield the kids from.

“In 2018, I relocated to Graaff-Reinet, now known as Robert Sobukwe Town, for work.

“However, while I was working there, parents in Missionvale repeatedly called for my return, saying that since I had left, their children had stopped participating in sports and were getting involved in criminal activities.

Swelindawo with some of his 90 registered players in his Rising Stars Development programme. (Eugene Coetzee)

“I returned in 2020, and in 2023 I decided to start my own initiative, the Rising Stars Soccer Development Programme.

“I concentrated not just on football development but also on exploring other programmes such as life skills, education, and helping them with homework where necessary, as well as entertainment to keep them occupied during school holidays.”

Swelindawo said he also aimed to provide the children with opportunities to showcase their football talents.

In 2023, the initiative opened its doors to all children from Gqeberha, not just those from Missionvale.

He said collaborating with other football development programmes in the Bay, such as Future Stars FC, South End United and Ebhayi Football Club, had significantly improved opportunities for his players, as his own programme lacked adequate resources.

“I have players such as Sive Lombo and Hlumelo Ndlolo who are with Future Stars, and Onke Mzozoyana is with Pro Skills Soccer Academy.

“Luphawu Jekemba, Ntsika Ngwendu and Simiso Mxoveni are with South End United.

“We also have Athi Johannes, our former development goalkeeper, who is now playing for North West University, and Simamkele Pefile, who is currently playing for Major Chiefs in the Hollywoodbets Regional League.

“We don’t only play here in Gqeberha, but we travel as far as St Francis Bay to play in tournaments, Greenbushes and Humansdorp.

“Those are some of the areas we travel to with these boys, with the hope of giving them experience and exposure to playing competitive football.

“We also collaborate with teams that are not under the Nelson Mandela Bay metro.

“Hence, even now, we are getting calls from teams outside that want to invite us to their events.”

Swelindawo, who works as a security officer at Volpes in Gqeberha, said the programme had grown immensely.

He said they had a total of 90 players from U11 to seniors in their database.

“We also host an annual event called the Missionvale Sport Festival, which this year is scheduled to take place from June 13 to 16 as the programme celebrates its 18-year milestone.

I usually cover the costs of running the programmes myself since there are currently no sponsorships. We’ve made multiple attempts to get help, but it’s tough to find support.
— Zolani Swelindawo

“The sport festival is in its third edition now; we have been hosting it for the past three years.

“In previous years, we have had guests such as Daine Klate, Bruce July, Marc Manuel, and Lwazi Sahula from Keep Active.

“I usually cover the costs of running the programmes myself since there are currently no sponsorships.

“We’ve made multiple attempts to get help, but it’s tough to find support.

“However, instead of being inactive, I decided we should proceed so that anyone who wants to help can do so with something that is already in progress.

“With the tournament, we do get assistance from aQuellé. They have been helping us with water since we started the event.

“I have also received a three-piece soccer kit from my workplace, and Ebhayi donates their playing kits to us as well.

“We have a very good working relationship with them.”

He continually pushes his recruits to aspire to greater heights.

“I’m still in discussions with Stars of Africa in Johannesburg. I’ll be spending a week there to observe how they develop players from a young age into national assets.

“Those are the development structures I would love for my boys to play under.

“I would also like to see the sport festival as one of the biggest sporting events in the Bay and for it to also get support from the municipality and local businesses.”

But his biggest plea is for township parents to support their children