Kakuva retires from SKW as player

EX-national team player Lucky Kakuva has called its quits after nine years of top-flight football, Sport Klub Windhoek (SKW) announced yesterday.

Kakuva will now serve as assistant coach at the club, alongside his team mate Rolf Beiter, who stepped down from competitive football last season. Kakuva and Beiter will assist Cymot SKW’s coach Richard Starke when the Namibia Premier League season starts next month.Their goalkeeper coach is Frank Schatz.Kakuva, who started his premiership career at Chief Santos in 1987, played a central role in the survival of SKW in top-flight football when they were on the brink of being relegated last season after enjoying a one-season spell in the domestic league.The 34-year-old midfielder turned defender told The Namibian Sport yesterday that he still wanted to serve Namibian football in a coaching capacity and was looking forward to the premiership season in that position.”I had my time as player and I think it is time to move on and serve football in a different capacity,” he said.Kakuva, who has won six caps in the senior national team, also played for the national under-20 team.His most memorable matches at that level were against Zambia, Angola and Malawi, but he believes that playing on club level was more rewarding, as he had to fight many battles on that stage.Kakuva joined Orlando Pirates in 1996 and stayed there until 2002 before returning to Santos for one more season.He arrived at SKW in 2003 and was named captain because of his positive, influential role on and off the field.He has won numerous awards at the various clubs he turned out for, and considers SKW’s survival of last season’s relegation threat as his most remarkable achievement.The weekend after securing another season in the league by beating Pirates with a solitary goal, Kakuva and his men took on the same team in the NFA Cup final, which they bravely lost in the end.Kakuva started playing football at the Nomtsoub Primary School at Tsumeb and played throughout his school years at Oshikoto Secondary.SKW will start with their pre-season training today.Kakuva and Beiter will assist Cymot SKW’s coach Richard Starke when the Namibia Premier League season starts next month.Their goalkeeper coach is Frank Schatz.Kakuva, who started his premiership career at Chief Santos in 1987, played a central role in the survival of SKW in top-flight football when they were on the brink of being relegated last season after enjoying a one-season spell in the domestic league.The 34-year-old midfielder turned defender told The Namibian Sport yesterday that he still wanted to serve Namibian football in a coaching capacity and was looking forward to the premiership season in that position.”I had my time as player and I think it is time to move on and serve football in a different capacity,” he said.Kakuva, who has won six caps in the senior national team, also played for the national under-20 team.His most memorable matches at that level were against Zambia, Angola and Malawi, but he believes that playing on club level was more rewarding, as he had to fight many battles on that stage.Kakuva joined Orlando Pirates in 1996 and stayed there until 2002 before returning to Santos for one more season.He arrived at SKW in 2003 and was named captain because of his positive, influential role on and off the field.He has won numerous awards at the various clubs he turned out for, and considers SKW’s survival of last season’s relegation threat as his most remarkable achievement.The weekend after securing another season in the league by beating Pirates with a solitary goal, Kakuva and his men took on the same team in the NFA Cup final, which they bravely lost in the end.Kakuva started playing football at the Nomtsoub Primary School at Tsumeb and played throughout his school years at Oshikoto Secondary.SKW will start with their pre-season training today.