Willem Mwedihanga: Defender forged at Ongwediva

Former Tigers and Brave Warriors defence stalwart Willem Mwedihanga started from humble beginnings to become one of the most sought-after defenders in the country and abroad.

Although born at Oshakati, the hard-tackling defender was raised at Ongwediva, which he calls home. It was only after he enroled as a Grade 8 pupil at Oluno Secondary School at Ondangwa, that the towering star took a keen interest in football.

“I didn’t really play much soccer in primary school. I was an attacking player and alternated as a winger and striker. One day while I was training back home at Ongwediva, we were short of defenders and I decided to play centre back,” the retired star explains.

“I started playing for my home team Teenagers but switched to KK Palace, albeit for a short spell, because I was schooling at Oluno secondary. I moved back to Teenagers before I joined Tigers in Windhoek in 2008. I was given the captain’s armband at the Ingweinyama.”

The defender spend four years at Tigers but arrived at the club at the wrong time as they were playing for their survival in the Namibian Premier League.

Ironically, Mwedihanga was also snapped up by the same Amazulu that signed striker Tangeni Shipahu, whose departure to South Africa led to Mwedihanga’s captaincy.

Mwedihanga, who wants to be remembered as a hard-working, man-marking defender and a lover of football, also enjoyed a short stint at the University of Pretoria FC (AmaTuks) before he was transferred to Platinum Stars in Rustenburg.

He was in good hands at Stars where he played with fellow Namibian stars Henrico Botes and Benson Shilongo.

Mwedihanga played alongside Ronald Katjijere at AmaTuks and while at AmaZulu, he was in the company of fellow Brave Warriors teammates Larry Horaeb, Petrus Shitembi, Sadney Uri-khob, and Shipahu.

“I really enjoyed my football in the South African Premier Soccer League. Professional football only requires players who are disciplined, hard working and consistent and I could only thank my lucky stars that I had all those attributes. Playing for the national team helped,” he notes.

“I already played for the Brave Warriors before I transferred to the South African top flight. The team owners and sponsors plough in lots of money in the teams. Hence, expectations from the teams towards players are very high. The same applies to our national team as well.”

The former Tigers skipper says he played against some of the continent’s toughest European-based forwards like Iche Ikechuku, Victor Moses and the ultra-talented Obi Mikel, whom he shadowed.

He mentions the Brave Warriors 1-1 draw against the Super Eagles of Nigeria during a World Cup qualifier as his most memorable game because Namibia had to overcome and match the level of the top Nigerian players.

“My game was not that good technically but it improved tremendously when I went to South Africa. My advantages were my good height, I could read the game well, and I had a great sense of anticipation and helped my game grow massively,” Mwedihanga notes.

“Your overall game improves when you are a good listener and try to apply whatever advice you receive from your coaches and fellow teammates, especially the more experienced ones.

“Football is a team sport and there is no room for individualism and selfishness.”

Playing for both the Brave Warriors and the Tisan team at the World Students Games against tough countries like host China and South Korea also sharpened Mwediganga’s game.

It was not only football for the retired star growing up, as he was also a formidable competitor in long and high jump at secondary school.

“I am a proud winner of the elusive Cosafa Cup with the Brave Warriors in 2015. It just had to be because we had a lot of experience with the first 11 players all playing in the South African professional leagues and we also came a long way with coach Ricardo Mannetti,” he says.

“We could have been very disappointed but we worked very hard during the tournament to bring home Namibia’s first silverware in the southern African regional competition. We had a great squad with a very experienced coach that year.”

Mwediganga says he has no regrets both as a player or in life because he feels that everything he experienced was part of life.

The former defender made good use of some of the money that he made during his playing days in South Africa by reinvesting in his education to secure his future.

“It all started while I was in Namibia. I obtained my airconditioning and refrigeration training at Valombola Vocational Training Centre at Ongwediva and I also did my plumbing and pipe fitting diploma at the Windhoek Vocational Training Centre.

“When I stopped playing in South Africa in 2020 I went to school in Cape Town and did my N4 diploma in quantity surveyor and structural surveyor. I run my own company, Mwedihanga Investment, and we do construction, maintenance, logistics, renovation.”

Mwedihanga also does procurement & supply and estate service.

Meanwhile, the former Brave Warriors ace defender is an assistant coach and a fitness trainer for premier league outfit Unam FC.

Mwedihanga says he is happy with his achievements as a player since he never played the junior national teams and never attended development academies but still made it to the senior national team.

“I could have probably been a top player if I had gone through the development structures or if I had gone through the junior national teams. That is why I always tell people that I influenced my own career because no one can claim to have developed me,” he says.

He points out the fact that he is the only member of his family who played football, adding that his journey required a lot of sacrifices.

Mwedihanga, who still plays in the social league or even with the Unam boys, although not too often, says this is not the way he imagined life after his playing days.

“With my company it was planned way back and I already registered my company while I was still playing actively. Being a football coach is the last thing that was on my mind. My interest started after I was invated by coach Ronnie Kanalelo,” he explains.

“Sometime during Covid-19 I helped coach Colin Benjamin with coaching the under-15 side of his development academy. Still I never harboured the thought of becoming a coach but today here I am, being the assistant in a premier league,” Mwedihanga said.

The former footballer advises young players to take care of their health.

 “Only a fit body can enable them to play football at the best of their ability,” he says, adding that discipline and hard work should also be their watchword if they wish to play professionally.

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