I had a very fulfilling football career – former Stars captain Nico Hindjou

Former African Stars captain Nico Hindjou will go down in Namibian football history as one of the most refined central defenders the country has ever produced.

Hindjou skippered the Samba Boys to victory in the Castle Classic Cup and the Metropolitan Champion of Champions Cup, during which he scored a goal in the final.

Gifted with a keen sense of anticipation, aerial dominance, excellent ball control and the ability to read the game, Hindjou was the definition of an exceptional defender.

Born in an era when loyalty mattered most, Hindjou played for African Stars throughout his entire career – a testament to one of his greatest qualities.

“I grew up supporting African Stars and the fact that my late brother Alfred ‘Juku’ Tjazuko not only played for the team but he was one of the biggest influencial players of the team, inspired me a lot. It was my wish to play alongside him one day,” Hindjou says.

“African Stars was and still is a major force in Namibian football. The Stars of yesteryear were very exciting and the team boasted some of the best players in the country at the time. Players like Oscar Mengo, Albert Tjihero, Alu Hummel and George Gariseb were superstars.”

The former sweeper says you had to be an exceptional player to walk into the first team of the Stars at the time.Born in Windhoek but raised by his grandmother until the age of seven at Ozondati, a settlement in the Kunene region, Hindjou started kicking around a tennis ball with his friends in the dusty streets of Katutura at the age of eight.

“I was introduced to organised football with the Bethold Himumuene Primary School team at Katutura. There were no school leagues at the time and we just played friendlies against the other schools in Windhoek. I started as a striker,” Hindjou says.

“I was later sent to St Don Bosco Primary School at farm Goas, near Usakos, where I continued football, and I remember my teammates like Puma Shinuna, who went on to play for Benfica and Salathiel Ndjao who played for Blue Waters and Orlando Pirates.”

After St Don Bosco, Hindjou attended Welwitschia Junior Secondary School at Khorixas, where he met David ‘Fellah’ Snewe and Gruzi Goseb from Cornelius Goreseb High School.

Snewe went on to terrorise defences and goalkeepers as a feared striker for Black Africa, Liverpool of Okahandja and the national team, while Goseb, who played for Sorento Bucks and African Stars, developed into one of the country’s best goalkeepers.

“After finishing Grade 10 at Khorixas, I returned to Windhoek where I continued my Grade 11 and 12. I joined Stars in 1984 and I have never looked back ever since. That was the time I transformed as a player,” he notes.

“I walked straight into the first team and I made my debut against fellow Katutura giants Tigers during the Top Four Tournament at the SKW Field at Olympia. We won the match 2-1 and I was hauled off after 60 minutes because I was tired like a dog. It was my first time.”

Hindjou, who describes himself as a player with an inborn winning mentality, says he made his mark on that day, becoming a regular in the starting line-up, where he was converted into a midfielder from a winger’s position.

He says that although he was a never-say-die fighter on the football pitch, he was never aggressive in his approach towards his opponents, and although he went in hard into a tackle, he would win the ball fairly from his opponent.

“I didn’t want to lose a match. I had the same committed approach whether it was a league, cup competition or friendly encounter. If the forwards did not score, I would start attacking from the back and try to create scoring opportunities for the forwards,” he explains.

“If I didn’t pop up during a corner kick or free-kick, I would try everything in my ability to make my team win. I was very competitive but I was not someone who tried to win at all costs. I only picked up two red tickets during the 10 years I played for Stars.”

Hindjou, who was later converted to central defence as the team’s sweeper, says he was privileged to play alongside Albert ‘Honjo’ Tjihero, whom he considers one of the best central defenders the country has ever produced.

He speaks with the same respect about former Tigers skipper Mentos Hipondoka, Black Africa’s retired captain Cosmos ‘Indies’ Damaseb and former Chief Santos defence stalwart Puli Subeb, with whom he draws comparisons because both started attacks from the back.

Hindjou never played for the Southwest Africa side at the Currie Cup Provincial Tournament, but he was twice called up for the Southwest Africa invitational teams that played against visiting South African professional outfits Morocco Swallows and Bush Bucks.

He points out that playing against those teams was a real eye-opener, as he learned a great deal about the tactical and technical aspects of the game. In contrast, the Namibian game at the time was mostly focused on outrunning opponents, with little emphasis on technical skill.

Hindjou regrets an injury that prevented him from honouring his call-up to the star-studded Namibian Presidential XI, that played an exhibition match against former Russian giants Lokomotiv Moscow during the Namibian independence celebrations in 1990.

“I would have loved to play alongside world class players like Karl-Heinz Rummefige of Germany and Spain’s Hector Camacho, not to mention South Africa’s legendary star Ephraim ‘Jomo’ Sono. But it was probably not my time,” the former defender says.

“I don’t even regret the fact that I never got the opportunity to play professional football. We never had opportunities like today and today’s players can count themselves lucky that they even get paid to play for their teams. We never had that luxury.”

Hindjou, now a father of six, is currently enjoying his retirement at Ozondati Reserve. He says that, although they received good rains this season, he is not farming at the moment, although he is considering it for the future.

“I had a few cattle and goats but we have been hit by a severe drought and I lost my animals in the process. The presence of wild animals also poses a major threat to the farmers in our area. The area is mostly free of lions but the hyenas are terrorising our fields,” he says.

The retired star urges today’s young players to take the advice from their coaches seriously to improve their game because football has become a very lucrative career.

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