Sport Matters

Ever since Floyd Mayweather's trip here was announced by the South African Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula I have been wondering about the purpose of the controversial boxing champion Floyd Mayweather's visit. Well, I am not in the dark anymore because "Money" has said it himself: "I don't know why I'm here but it's good to be in Africa." Of course it's good to be in Africa, despite all the troubles the continent experiences and you got to love Mayweather for his honesty in this instance. Mbalula has brought to the sport minsitry, which for a long time had been stagnanted by his predecessors. However, the trouble with "Fiks" are two main distractions to his mission:  his love of the party and obsession of for US celebrities. If Mayweather is here to inspire somebody - youth or boxers - then he does not come fully equipped for that task. This was seen by his late arrival at the Dube Boxing Club in Soweto today. He visibly thr

Man to watch. . . Abdoulaye Sissoko, left, shows why he's the man to mark when Mali meet South Africa today. Sidibe, Traore, Sissoko, Diarra, Coulibaly. . . these are the names any Mali football team is likely to have. Mali players are characteristically lanky and muscular. They play in a semi-professional league which is largely based in the capital Bamako, with very little organised football in far-flung regions of the massive country. Given this usual background about Mali football, what's there to fear for South Africa ahead of their Chan 2014 fixture this evening? Well, Mali beat Nigeria 2-1 in their opening match, and their tactical aptitude and aggressive approach were a delight to watch in that match. Does this now mean restless time for Bafana Bafana? It should not be. Mali is not Bafana's problem, self-doubt is what limits the host team. Fair enough, it was Mali which kicked South Africa out of the Afcon 2013, at the quarterfinals. Ironically, SA is h