A FOOTBALL genius who packed dynamite in both feet, the football journey of Anton Damaseb, better known as Orlando in football circles, started inauspiciously.
Gentle but lethal in front of goal and a real nightmare for many opposing goalkeepers – the stocky forward was deemed not good enough by the late Percy “Chippa” Moloi when the former Orlando Pirates (South Africa) came to South West Africa (Namibia) on the invitation of local football guru Herbert Conradie.
Moloi was roped in to change the fortunes of Etosha Lions (Chief Santos) in 1969 and while his buddies Steps Nickel and Hendrik Dawids got the nod ahead of him – the Grootfontein born lad never lost hope and would attend each and every single practice session using the experience gained under the guidance of Moloi to good effect in later years as he went on to become one of the most feared strikers this country has ever produced.
GROOTFONTEIN – Orlando Damaseb’s casual approach towards many aspects of life might have deceived those around him but one Daniel Kubas saw something special in this baby-faced, reserved young man and persuaded him to relocate to Tsumeb with the ultimate view of having his football skills honed in a more conducive environment.
In years gone by, Tsumeb used to be a booming town business-wise with the TCL copper mine very much active. There were few football teams around town and stake games, which was quite fun, were always played.
Although topflight football was taboo for up-and-coming youngsters in those years, when news hit the streets that Moloi was in town to take Etosha Lions through their paces, many aspiring footballers would not budge and converged at the Etosha Lions training ground to learn a few tips about the beautiful game from the tricky Soweton.
“He (Chippa) brought a new dimension to the local game, it was a real eye-opener watching him at work during practice sessions. The team had talented footballers but that alone was not enough in the absence of tactical and technical awareness and this is where Chippa came in handsomely. To be quite honest, I was not really too much interested in football and only went along with my buddies to while away time.”
Etosha Lions played a lot of exhibition matches in and around the copper town but young Orlando never got a chance to make his presence felt in any of those games, while his boyhood buddy Steps Nickel was always the preferred candidate ahead of him.
“Steps became a complete footballer because of Chippa’s influence,” recalled the former striker as he took New Era Sport through his thorny journey in local football.
As fate would dictate, Moloi’s romance with the Tsumeb-based outfit ended on a sour note when the late Herbert Conradie, the man who masterminded his arrival in South West Africa, suddenly disappeared into thin air – leaving the poor Moloi stranded in Tsumeb.
The team was obliged to arrange friendly matches to raise funds for Moloi’s inevitable return to his native land.
“Luckily, we had a good management team under the leadership of the late Engelhard Gariseb, a former schoolteacher by profession. He hastily arranged a few exhibition matches in Windhoek under the theme ‘Farewell for Chippa’. The team played against Rocco Swallows and another team in front of capacity crowds at the old Katutura stadium.
“Although I did not feature in those games, I was part and parcel of the touring squad and still vividly remember Chippa’s exact words, ‘I suggest that you guys change the name to Chief Santos upon your return to Tsumeb.’
“My recollection is that the name change was a sign of protest against the Houdini act executed by Conradie but as in many institutions some of the old guard were not very keen on the name change but Engelhard stuck to his guns and renamed the team to Chief Santos – leading to an exodus of players.”
Their departure opened the door for some of the action starved youngsters and the likes of Orlando and many others started to get regular game time. Shortly afterwards, Orlando went to further his schooling at the St Joseph’s Secondary School in Dobra near Windhoek in 1971.
He found himself in the company of older boys there such as Oscar Mengo, Ben Kauejao, Five Hochobeb and Karirii Katire amongst others and joined a school team going by the name of Eusebio, comprising mainly of boys who hailed from Okombahe and Omaruru. Though he was selected for the school’s second strings – he never really got the chance to feature prominently in the star-studded Dobra outfit.
“I used to hang around with my boyhood buddy Pius Eigowab who always dragged me along to Windhoek whenever Black Africa came to knock on his door for his services. Pius would refuse point blankly to go demanding that I should accompany him. That was Pius, he was just a different character.”
When Orlando finally came back to his hometown Grootfontein – he immediately joined a local football club Proteas. His arrival coincided with that of teacher Engelhard Gariseb, who backtracked to his native town and it was Gariseb who suggested that Proteas FC change their name as it apparently symbolised a South African flower because anything with the slightest connections to South Africa was considered an evil in those days because of apartheid.
Proteas underwent a facelift and the team was renamed Goal Hunters to be renamed Chelsea under the tutorship of Gariseb. “We managed to assemble the finest footballers around town and started to make serious inroads in the domestic football scene. In one of our very first games, we were pitted against the youthful Battle Boys Football Club from Okahandja in a knockout tournament in Windhoek. The northerners took an unassailable 4-goal lead going into the break on the gravel B field at the old Katutura stadium with young Orlando netting a hat trick.
“In those days, players doubled up as referees and the said referee in that particular match had to go and play for his team on the A-field – resulting in a new referee taking over the whistle after the break. I just don’t know what happened but that referee was a bad egg with all the decisions going against us. We eventually lost the match 7-4.”
Orlando remained a valuable member of Proteas until 1978 when the team amalgamated with Spurs Football Club – leading to the inevitable birth of Chelsea under the leadership of the immaculately dressed school principal Ellis Hauwanga.
“His excellent leadership qualities played a major role in our success as he brought a new dimension to our game. All the players were totally committed to the task at hand and that easily led to Chelsea dominating domestic football for many years to come. There was no favouritism in the selection policy with almost 90% of the playing personnel well disciplined.”
A diehard Manchester United fan, it was Orlando who suggested the name Chelsea for some strange reason. “Being a former rugby player, Ellis used to be a fitness fanatic and a strict disciplinarian who never compromised on training and sometimes we would just do roadwork without getting anywhere near a soccer ball for the entire week.”
Orlando recalls with tears of anger swelling in his eyes that fateful day when an ageing referee one Arnulf Schmidt better known as “Smitty” in football circles, denied Chelsea a well deserved victory when he awarded a highly questionable spot kick to Black Africa in the final of the lucrative Mainstay Cup t the Windhoek Show Grounds in 1982.
Chelsea were absolutely on song on that particular day and had taken a well deserved lead with the Francis brothers Tigers and Richo in devastating form for the visitors. “We tore them apart and were really cruising until Smitty awarded BA a dubious penalty after young Steven Hochobeb tumbled in the box with the slightest of touches. That discouraged a number of our players who eventually quit football for good after we lost focus losing the match which was there for the taking 3-2.”
Chelsea never recovered from that setback and their dominance in domestic football slowly waned as many of the players became demoralised after what they termed “daylight robbery” – up to this day. Subsequently, he joined the rebel Namibia National Super League also featuring African Stars, Black Africa, Tigers, Orlando Pirates, Benfica, Blue Waters and Eleven Arrows in 1985.
Orlando was a member of the country’s most successful Currie Cup team during the South African Provincial tournament in Durban in 1982 but the diminutive striker got injured against the South African Mines combined team in the opening game and had no further interest in the tournament.
The team finished in a commendable 3rd place overall after narrowly losing against Northern Transvaal (2-1) in the semi-finals but there was some consolation for the South West Africa team when both Kleintjie Gaseb and Dale Stephanus were selected for the Springbok Invitation Currie Cup team after the tournament.
He considers Lucky Boostander as the most complete midfielder of all time during his football career whilst he picks Celle Auchumeb alongside himself as the most lethal striker this country has ever produced.
“Many people don’t talk about Celle but that boy was extremely dangerous and could score vital goals from tight angles at any given time. Who can forget his brace against the South West Africa White Invitational Eleven in 1975?”
“Oscar (Mengo) possessed great passing skills, which are of course the characteristics of a good midfielder but players like Ranga Lucas, Riva Jakonia, Pieces Damaseb and the Francis brothers Tiger and Richo were equally excellent footballers while Bonettie Niilenge (Blue Waters) and Ndjiva Kauami (African Stars) were doubtlessly the goalkeepers with the safest pair of hands in the local game,” reveals the former Chelsea lethal goal getter with genuine enthusiasm.
By Carlos Kambaekwa