Magical Frank impress with ball

FORMER Namibian sprint king Frank Fredericks aided by his speed, swift dribbling and the magic to find the net, stood out among the many football veterans during the Amos Shiyuka Testimonial match at the Independence Stadium Saturday.

Fredericks, a former Black Africa striker, despite ending on the losing side, clearly caused havoc in the defence of the South African Legends team which played against a Shiyuka Invitational side. Despite the match being in honour of the Civics hardman, Fredericks stole the show with his signature sprints, lovely ball control and superb crosses.The home side lost 3-2 in the end after taking a lead in the dying minutes of the first half through the boot of former Brave Warriors and Orlando Pirates hitman Mabos Ortmann.Ortmann latched onto a Fredericks cross which hit the upright to slot the ball into the empty net in a highly entertaining encounter which saw the retirement of former Brave Warriors and Civics defender Shiyuka.The thousands of fans who pitched for the encounter were kept on the edges of their seats as most of the retired players did not disappoint, with most receiving praise for their clever, quick and stylish passes and dribbling skills.The home side led 1-0 at half-time, but before that, there were great moments of brilliance and sometimes missed chances from especially the home team.Former Tigers great Foresta Nicodemus could just not find his trademark and darting runs past the visitors defence and also shot wide at goal twice, despite being presented with clear chances.Ortmann, who was the sharp-shooter for his team, took a fantastic strike from about 20 meters midway through the first half which was perfectly stopped by former Mamelodi Sundowns goalie William Okpara.For the South African legends, as customary, former Kaizer Chiefs maestro Doctor Khumalo commanded the midfield, but tight marking gave him little room to supply team-mate and former Bafana Bafana leading striker, Phil Masinga.Masinga was kept in check by Tiger Goagoseb, while on the left flank in attack, Lucky Richter enjoyed himself with some tricky dribbling and well calculated crosses infield.Lolo Goraseb and Congo Hindjou took control of matters in midfield, but showed little of their usual explosiveness when in charge of the ball.Ronnie Kanalelo kept a clean sheet and was replaced by Danzyl Bruwer who entertained the crowd with his acrobatic display in goal.Bruwer made two fantastic saves in the second half, but that did not prevent the visitors to find the net through their captain David Nyati who drew the sides level at 1-1.It was not long after Fredericks broke into space on the right flank, and like a seasoned striker worked his way into the box past several defenders, before unleashing a low flying shot which went past Okpara unnoticed.That goal was possibly the best on the day, as it had the crowd going wild for a few minutes, while Fredericks celebrated in a famous Didier Drogba aeroplane style (with his arms stretched wide sideways).Fredericks at that moment seemed to be on track for another goal, but coach Brian Isaacks replaced him and minutes after that, Bashin Mahlangu scored through a penalty to draw the score level at 2-all.The third goal was all due to a lack of concentration by the Namibian defence, as Nyati recorded his second with a fabulous strike just inside the box to beat Bruwer, and after that, the visitors resorted to some tricks with the ball to kill time.Despite the loss, the match proved worthwhile to thousands of fans who packed the stadium, while a glittering music performance rounded off the event in what was a perfect sending off for Shiyuka who retired at the age of 29.Shiyuka was the second player after Ricardo Mannetti to have a match in his honour.Despite the match being in honour of the Civics hardman, Fredericks stole the show with his signature sprints, lovely ball control and superb crosses.The home side lost 3-2 in the end after taking a lead in the dying minutes of the first half through the boot of former Brave Warriors and Orlando Pirates hitman Mabos Ortmann.Ortmann latched onto a Fredericks cross which hit the upright to slot the ball into the empty net in a highly entertaining encounter which saw the retirement of former Brave Warriors and Civics defender Shiyuka.The thousands of fans who pitched for the encounter were kept on the edges of their seats as most of the retired players did not disappoint, with most receiving praise for their clever, quick and stylish passes and dribbling skills.The home side led 1-0 at half-time, but before that, there were great moments of brilliance and sometimes missed chances from especially the home team.Former Tigers great Foresta Nicodemus could just not find his trademark and darting runs past the visitors defence and also shot wide at goal twice, despite being presented with clear chances.Ortmann, who was the sharp-shooter for his team, took a fantastic strike from about 20 meters midway through the first half which was perfectly stopped by former Mamelodi Sundowns goalie William Okpara.For the South African legends, as customary, former Kaizer Chiefs maestro Doctor Khumalo commanded the midfield, but tight marking gave him little room to supply team-mate and former Bafana Bafana leading striker, Phil Masinga.Masinga was kept in check by Tiger Goagoseb, while on the left flank in attack, Lucky Richter enjoyed himself with some tricky dribbling and well calculated crosses infield.Lolo Goraseb and Congo Hindjou took control of matters in midfield, but showed little of their usual explosiveness when in charge of the ball.Ronnie Kanalelo kept a clean sheet and was replaced by Danzyl Bruwer who entertained the crowd with his acrobatic display in goal.Bruwer made two fantastic saves in the second half, but that did not prevent the visitors to find the net through their captain David Nyati who drew the sides level at 1-1.It was not long after Fredericks broke into space on the right flank, and like a seasoned striker worked his way into the box past several defenders, before unleashing a low flying shot which went past Okpara unnoticed.That goal was possibly the best on the day, as it had the crowd going wild for a few minutes, while Fredericks celebrated in a famous Didier Drogba aeroplane style (with his arms stretched wide sideways).Fredericks at that moment seemed to be on track for another goal, but coach Brian Isaacks replaced him and minutes after that, Bashin Mahlangu scored through a penalty to draw the score level at 2-all.The third goal was all due to a lack of concentration by the Namibian defence, as Nyati recorded his second with a fabulous strike just inside the box to beat Bruwer, and after that, the visitors resorted to some tricks with the ball to kill time.Despite the loss, the match proved worthwhile to thousands of fans who packed the stadium, while a glittering music performance rounded off the event in what was a perfect sending off for Shiyuka who retired at the age of 29.Shiyuka was the second player after Ricardo Mannetti to have a match in his honour.