KATUTURA glamour football club Orlando Pirates, alias the Ghosts, showed their impressive depth in their squad in years gone by when they went on an astonishing winning spree spanning an unbelievable period of three years that saw the untouchable Buccaneers sweeping every available award on offer.
While the arrival and intensity brought about by two raw young wingers in the shape of the late pair of Daniel Koopman and Willem Eichab ignited the Buccaneers to greater heights, it was in fact the clever midfield play by the unheralded pop star lookalike Gustav Jimmy-Naruseb, better known as Bassieman among his circle of friends and acquaintances,that engineered most of the attacks that proved decisive.
Bassieman fitted like a hand in glove in the five-man pronged Ghosts attack alongside the legendary Ishmael “Lemmy Special” Narib, Michael Pienaar senior and the troublesome twin flanks Willem and Daniel.
The pocket-size midfielder was deployed in the crucial number 8 position where he competed fiercely against his equally dangerous counterparts in the mould of William “Zika” Martin, Albert Louw, Oscar Mengo, Grey Umati and many other classy midfield-cum-strikers in the now outdated 1-1-4-5 system where every footballer on the field of play enjoyed the freedom to attack and grazed every blade of grass at their discretion.
Pirates virtually played with the same starting line-up for over three seasons sweeping their opponents aside in each and every competition on local soil with Bassieman playing a pivotal role in creating countless goal-scoring opportunities for the likes of Daniel, Willem, Lemmy and Ou Pine to rattle the opposition’s net at the slightest provocation.
After years of battling to track down the likeable tricky handsome midfielder, New Era Sport finally caught up with the silver fox at his modest home in Khorixas’ old location and here is his full version of his experience in domestic football.
Bassieman relates how Daniel and Wally brought a new dimension to Pirates, including domestic football in general with yet to be matched wing play and amazing telepathic understanding.
KHORIXAS – In the days after the extraordinary exploits of the untouchable Orlando Pirates outfit in the late sixties and early seventies, which delivered several silverware for the Ghosts, there is a strong swirl of emotions among the living members of that star-studded Buccaneers squad.
Born in Usakos in the Erongo Region in 1946, young Bassieman was destined to become a great footballer after he made his debut for the Buccaneers against Tigers at the old Katutura stadium as a raw untested youngster. He scored the only goal of the match to end Tigers’ long unbeaten run in domestic football and those around him then started to take serious note of his extraordinary football skills.
His football career began in his hometown Usakos where he featured for local club Morning Stars before he relocated to the coastal town of Walvis Bay in 1963. One facet of his flourishing football career that Bassieman will never forget in his dotage is his close association with his newly found team mates at Marroco Boys FC in Walvis Bay.
“It was a small team just to while away time but there were great footballers in that squad. Players like Lala Lombard and his brother as well as Ou Black Thaniseb were a rare breed but unfortunately most of the guys that I played with during my younger days are no more but they certainly left a long lasting legacy in my football development,” he reveals with an obvious sad look in his eyes.
“What was more interesting is that the bulk of players in that squad hailed from Usakos which led to a very good camaraderie among the team mates and I think that contributed to our success on the field as we won lots of knockout tournaments in towns such as Okombahe, Usakos and Karibib.”
In the meantime, Bassieman also featured for Namib Woestyn’s 2nd strings and was among very few local footballers to enjoy that rare opportunity of rubbing shoulders with the legendary Percy “Chippa” Moloi (Tebogo Moloi’s old man) during his short stint with Tsumeb outfit Etosha Lions during a tournament in the copper town.
Bassieman found himself on the move again the following year and this time, he headed to the city of lights with his musician uncle, Hendrik Jimmy-Naruseb, who was a mean saxophonist in the same league as musical legends from yester-year Leyden Naftalie, Xarigurob, Hosea Mahua and Warmgat Mureko.
“My uncle received a tempting job offer with Terry’s Motors as a driver and since he was also a gifted musician, he was very keen to advance his musical career – hence the decision to relocate to Windhoek where real life was always ordered.
“There was this guy going by the name of Dawid Gamseb, a very good boxer. For some strange reason this bloke happened to know me from a distance after watching me in action for Namib Woestyn’s second team during a knockout tournament in Okahandja.
“Bra Dave was also the captain of Orlando Pirates and persuaded me to join the Ghosts even though he was a close relative of the late Jeremia Jagger whose entire clan were attached to rival club Rocco Swallows FC.”
It did not take long for Bassieman to make up his mind because he was also fascinated by what he had seen at Pirates. “Pirates had a very talented and strong squad of ambitious young footballers and I certainly wanted to be part of that project while the prospect of playing alongside the likes of Lemmy, Phillemon Awaseb, Hans Eichab, Thomas Losper, Dawid Gamseb and Joseph Auchumeb was enough to entice any aspiring footballer.”
After spending almost an entire season in the Ghosts’ reserves, Bassieman finally got his big break when he was thrown into the lion’s den – making his eagerly awaited debut for the Buccaneers first team against Tigers. He passed the stern test with flying colours, netting the only goal of the match and as they say, the rest is history.
From that moment, there was no turning back as Bassieman went on to form a deadly combination with the equally dangerous quadruplets masterminded by Lemmy, Ou Pine and in later years, the troublesome pair of Daniel and Wally.
“Those two boys, Wally and Daniel, brought a new dimension to our game plan. They were absolutely fantastic and could tear any defence apart with their pace, shooting, dribbling and positional play not to mention their frequent exchange of positions when they deemed it necessary. They were beyond any measure of par excellence and as we speak now, I’m yet to witness such telepathic understanding between two footballers in the modern game.
“In those days, we never had the privilege of having players on the substitute’s bench. It was the good old days of total football where each and everyone on the field were obliged to cover every blade of grass. This does not mean that we played without a game plan just running like headless chickens – we indeed played according to a certain strategy while we could also easily adjust our system according to the pattern of the game.”
With Bassieman pulling the strings in the middle of the park, the Ghosts became invincible and dominated domestic football for three consecutive years – suffering defeat only on three occasions during that particular period against Namib Woestyn, Dobra and Pirates (Dolam) – two of those defeats were just mere warm-up encounters.
Bassieman missed out on featuring for his native land for an envisaged provincial friendly when he was among a record number of 12 players from Orlando Pirates called up for trials for the South West Africa (SWA) Invitational team.
Pirates, on the way to Walvis Bay to compete in a coastal knockout tourney found themselves stranded when the vehicle in which they were travelling broke down in Usakos.
All the Pirates players had to hitchhike and found refuge with traditional rivals Black Africa. However, the players put the club before country and opted to turn out for their beloved Buccaneers, a decision that culminated in all the Pirates players being omitted from the trials list for the SWA squad.
As time passed, Bassieman sent shockwaves among the Ghosts’ faithful when he jumped ship to join forces with the newly established Poison Cobras FC, under the stewardship of the late pair of credible football administrators Herbert Conradie and Ben Gariseb.
His unceremonious departure was apparently prompted by unhappiness with the fashion in which new player-coach Dios Engelbrecht, who arrived from Rocco Swallows, conducted his business at the Ghosts – prompting the pocket-sized midfielder to seek greener pastures elsewhere.
However, Bassieman was back in familiar territory again after just two unfruitful seasons in the red and green attire of Cobras as the ambitious club failed dismally to make any significant impact despite the admirable quality of playing personnel at its disposal.
He eventually swallowed his pride and retreated to his beloved Pirates before he finally hung up his favourite white Adidas togs in 1974 – the same year he tied the knot with his gorgeous sweetheart, Annah-Idah.
By Carlos Kambaekwa