By Mpheni Tshivhase
- Zinzile Mhesele’s Thembu Warriors club in the Eastern Cape helped Emihle Njara reach the Hollywoodbets Super League and Fort Hare.
- Mhesele says he funds Thembu Warriors from his own pocket and has never had a reliable sponsor to help him.
Behind the awards and success stories is a much harder reality. Zinzile Mhesele said keeping his sports programmes going has come at a significant personal cost, with much of the financial burden falling on him.
“To be honest with you, it’s not easy and as a result I’m thinking of quitting. I have been here for quite a long time,” he said.
Mhesele founded Thembu Warriors Sport Club in the Eastern Cape. What started as a small community team has grown into a development structure with boys’ and girls’ football, as well as junior and senior netball.
One of the clearest examples of the club’s impact is Emihle Njara, from Peddie, who grew up playing football with her brothers in the dusty streets, with no proper boots.
“The team didn’t just give me a jersey, it gave me family. It gave me discipline and confidence,” she said.
Through Thembu Warriors, she went on to play for the University of Fort Hare and compete in the Hollywoodbets Super League.
Much of the work, Mhesele said, has been funded from his own pocket.
“Most of the time I use money from my own pocket,” he said.
That includes buying shoes for learners and covering awards costs. For an upcoming awards event, he said he has already spent more than R10,000 of his own money.
He has received support from Gift of the Givers and Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis, and help with sanitary pads from Kenvenue and the Small Projects Foundation.
But he does not have a consistent sponsor.
He believes even a small contribution, a football, a pair of shoes, or money for a child to get to a game, can make a difference.
“It’s been a while and I do this for the Black child with no help,” he said.
Pictured above: Zinzile Mhesele preparing sanitary products and toiletries for distribution to schoolgirls in the Eastern Cape.
Image source: Supplied
