It is uncommon for a former football player to become president of his country’s football body, but former African Stars captain Benjamin ‘Tokollo’ Naobeb defied that notion to become the first president of the Namibian Football Association (NFA).
A striker with coastal giants Eleven Arrows before he joined Stars in 1978, Naobeb is a product of the Martin Luther High School’s football team.
Naobeb was first introduced to a plastic soccer ball at the tender age of six at his family farm in 1964.
“My brothers and cousins, who were already schooling at Okahandja at the time, would be returning from town with plastic and tennis balls they have received as Christmas gifts, and we would play endlessly.
“I literally honed my football skills on the farm before I moved to Okahandja, where I attended Okahandja Combined School. As a youngster I played street football from morning until sunset without tiring,” he says.
But it was at Martin Luther where the imposing Afro-haired striker, who was also a high jumper of note, became a fearsome striker.
Naobeb benefited immensely from the school team’s tactics, which were built around him as the central part of the attack inside the penalty area of the opposition.
“I benefited from our tactical approach . . . We had a formidable team, but our small school population didn’t give us a lot of options to play. On the other hand, it was also to our own advantage, because we remained together for long and developed unbreakable bonds,” he says.
Naobeb’s talents were recognised by Spoilers at Okahandja and he soon started to feature for his home team alongside his childhood friends.
Unsurprisingly, the towering attacker joined harbour town giants Arrows after finishing school, because most of his teammates from the school team were from Walvis Bay.
The school team used to go play a lot of friendly matches against Blue Waters and Arrows at Walvis Bay, where Naobeb was in the company of great players like Tommy Uushona, Nancky Watch Nawatiseb, Bossie Samaria and Lazarus Shikwambi.
“I enjoyed a great spell with Arrows, but as the saying goes: All good things must come to an end, and I had to leave Walvis to come to Windhoek for greener pastures.
“I was supposed to join Orlando Pirates initially, but they had their own Doc Hadley and didn’t show much interest.
“Mind you, I travelled to Tsumeb with Battle Boys, my home boys from Okahandja, for the Eastern Top 16 Soccer Tournament in 1978, where I attracted the interest of African Stars who asked me to join them.
“Getting into the Stars first 11 was not easy though,” he says.
Naobeb says he spent almost an entire season as a fringe player before he became a regular in the Stars starting line-up, which was not so easy given the galaxy of talent in the team.
Very soon he found himself in the company of exceptional footballers like Oscar Mengo, Gaika Kuvee, Albert Tjihero, Kaputji Kuhanga, Ndjiva Kauami, Willy Ritwa and Albert Tjihero.
Naobeb certainly grabbed the opportunity presented to him with both hands, and was even handed the captain’s armband.
“African Stars was completely on another level at the time. I was just happy to be part of a great team of their calibre. To captain such a greatly assembled team was beyond my wildest imagination, but it came as no surprise because I was a committed player.
“I was a team player and every time I entered a football pitch I tried my level best never to disappoint the supporters.
“They are always so loyal to the team. Players come and go but the fans are forever around. They scream their lungs out to motivate the team,” he says.
Naobeb was the first captain who presented Stars with two back-to-back Mainstay Cup successes when they won the coveted cup competition in 1980 and 1981.
WORK, FAMILY
The retired star married his wife, Magrietha, at Karasburg in 1980, and the couple has four children.
He says a normal day for him starts at 04h30 when he puts on his tracksuit and tekkies and takes his daily four-kilometre health walk, while his days are carefree with no job commitments.
“I feel honoured to have been the first post-independence president of the NFA. I have overseen the NFA being admitted to the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations, Confederation of African Football and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association.
“Apart from serving as chief of the country’s football controlling body, I was also vice chairman of the Namibia Sports Commission, while I was the senior sport officer of the University of Namibia (Unam) until my retirement in 2015.
“I have done my part,” he says.
Naobeb says he enjoyed being an administrator as much as he enjoyed banging in the goals for his teams.
He says he admires the commitment Peter Shalulile constantly shows to Mamelodi Sundowns, adding that those are the rewards of self-discipline and determination, while praising the young star for being an excellent ambassador for Namibian football.
“Namibian football currently has a deficit of role models, and Shalulile appears to be the only player who sets a great example of what commitment and self-discipline can do for a player.
“He clearly works hard at the training ground and enjoys his football on match days,” he says.
Naobeb urges young Namibian players to emulate the Brave Warriors skipper if they want to have a successful football career, while calling on the municipalities around the country to provide land for the local football teams where they could train their own young players.
