Namibian football has suffered a massive blow and is in deep shock following the passing of former Brave Warriors gaffer and veteran administrator
Seth Boois, who died yesterday at the age of 60 in a Windhoek hospital. Boois, who also coached and played for Namibian multiple league champions Black
Africa during his heyday, was also a technical director for the Namibia Football Association (NFA) between 2005 and 2007.
Leading the tributes yesterday was Boois’ childhood friend, Black Africa former teammate and ex-Brave Warriors head coach Rusten Mogane, who described Boois’ passing as a huge blow for local football and that Namibian football and sports at large have been orphaned without his fatherly wisdom.
“I’m really devastated by the news, I’m so heartbroken right now. I and Seth come a long way and our families had become one big family. We met when we were both around the age of 16 or 17 during our days at Augustineum Secondary School; it’s there where we discovered our love for football and sport. He was a great left-footed player who made things look very easy on the pitch.
From Augustineum, I left to go play for Black Africa and it was during that time that I also took him along with me to go play for Black Africa. I later became the coach of Black Africa and when I left the club to take over the Brave Warriors, I handed over the Black Africa coaching reins to him.”
“… I can go on the entire day about our friendship, but one thing I can assure you is that Namibian football has been orphaned by his passing. He was a great historian, a great writer, a dedicated family man who loved his wife so dearly. I would always speak so proudly about him and his wife Yvonne, whom he met at Augustineum as well. They remained committed to their union and raising their family and that is something I admired about Seth,” reflected a bereaved
Mogane, who guided the Brave Warriors at the historic 1998 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Burkina Faso.
Also devastated by the news of Boois’ passing yesterday was another childhood friend and Black Africa legend Kandas Paulinho, who reminisced about their playing days and also spoke highly of Boois’ undying love for writing and sharing knowledge through his books on football and cultural issues. Former NFA secretary general Barry Rukoro, who worked closely with Boois in local football circles, also extended a sincere word of condolence to the Boois family and described the late Boois as a dedicated football man who had big dreams for the development of Namibian football.
“It is really sad news … he was a dedicated football man and had a keen interest in the wholesale development of Namibian football. His work in football speaks for itself, he was truly dedicated to the game. He understood the essence of football development because he played the game and coached at the highest level. He was one of our most decorated coaches,” said a saddened Rukoro.
Known for his calmness and being soft-spoken, the late Boois was born in Otjiwarongo and started playing football at an early age for the likes of Rocco Chiefs
and Orlando Tigers in the central northern town of Otjiwarongo and would later go on to claim the throne at Black Africa. Apart from football, Boois was also a boxer while at Augustineum. Boois’ passion for football took him to Arandis where he played for Chiefs and for African Warriors of Swakopmund. He returned to Windhoek and was made assistant to Mogane, who was then player- coach of Black Africa. Soon afterwards, he was one of the first Namibians to benefit from the National Soccer Technical Development Programme, initiated by the NFA in 1990, under Doc // Naobeb, the founding president of the NFA.
With assistance from Bob Kandetu, then chairman of Black Africa and Mogane, Boois became the first Namibian football coach to receive advanced training in Brazil in 1992. He was subsequently nominated to attend a Fifa-sponsored Solidarity High Level Football Coaching Course in Swaziland.
He added to his long list of coaching qualifications the A-licence that he received after attending the Hennef Sport-Schule in Germany in 1998.
From 2002, Boois served as coach of the national under-23 team. Prior to that, he was appointed coach of the senior national team in 1998/99, taking the Warriors through seven matches with three victories, an equal number of losses and one draw. Boois also loved writing. He is the author of two books on the local game, one on the history of Namibian football and another specifically on the history of the national team. Two fictional titles, ‘Blood Diamonds’ and ‘Taxi in Windhoek’ were also penned by the multi-talented Boois.
– ohembapu@nepc.com.na