Football talent flows in Gebhardt’s veins

Playing street soccer is where a lot of footballers recognise their love and talent for the game, but for Brave Warriors winger Ananias Gebhardt football talent runs in his blood. While other children grow up with dreams of becoming a doctor, engineer and so forth, Gebhardt just wanted to follow in his father Fillimon Hafeni’s footsteps. Gebhardt has played professional football from the age of 15, when he was still a learner in Tsumeb. Sport Wrap sat down with the 27-year-old footballer to take us through his football career and where the skills came from. The son of a mineworker, Gebhardt said he was inspired by his father and being told about how good his father was, he wanted to be even better. He said he attributes his skills to his father, because a lot of people would tell him of how good his father’s tactical playing was. Gebhardt said football is in his blood because his younger brothers, Andreas Gebhardt (Tura Magic) and Brendon Hafeni, both play football. Football journey Gebhardt started playing football at Tigers while still in Tsumeb but could only join the team during school holidays. He said then he was only 15 and the team’s coach already wanted to give him a professional contract. “But the coach left so I was unable to finish signing the contract,” he said, adding that the new coach then advised him to go to Invincible FC because he was still young. He then signed with Invincible and played there for two seasons, before moving to Ramblers FC for two seasons. Gebhardt finally got his chance to play for Tigers FC during the 2011/2012 season to 2013/2014. He thereafter joined Black Africa from the 2014/2015 season and the current season. He said football has changed dramatically over the years that he has been playing. Football for a living While it is said that there is almost no money in Namibian football, Gebhardt said he is able to live on the salary he gets from his team. He has no other income. “Currently I am just playing football but I am living well, I’m able to put bread on the table for myself,” he said, adding that the country’s top league just needs more sponsors to make it more professional. He said if the league can have more than N$40 million per season then Namibian football can turn professional, but that can only happen if more companies come on board and sponsor the league, as that will also help the development of the national team. National team call-ups When one loves a game, they obviously want to represent their country at continental or international games, and for Gebhardt having that opportunity is an honour. He said his first call-up for the national team came in 2011, but he did not make it to the final squad. In the same year he was called up again and that time around he made it to the final squad that travelled to Malawi, and that was his first cap. Gebhardt said ever since then he has been in the national team, and when he was not called up it was because of an injury. “I so far have 23 national caps, and two Cosafa tournaments - that is last year and this year - so for me, a local player, to have all those caps is an honour because obviously it is not easy to make it to the national team. “For me to play locally as a professional will help me if I want to get a professional contract elsewhere.” Inspiration Besides his father, Gebhardt was also inspired by retired Namibian midfielder Collin Benjamin. He said Benjamin always inspired him during his years of playing. “I used to watch him play when he was approaching his latest stages for the national teams. He is really professional and always does his thing as a professional, and that is why he stayed in Europe for that long,” he said. At club level Gebhardt’s teammate Bryan Bantam keeps him going. He said Bantam is a skilful and a tricky player to play against, “so to play alongside him in my team is great to see the things that he does with the ball”. Gebhardt is also inspired by Amazulu FC player Petrus Shitembi, saying he is talented, skilful and an intelligent player. Father’s football history Fillimon Hafeni, Gebhard’s father, played for King Kauluma (KK) Palace in the late 1990s. He said hearing stories about how good his father was just shows how talented he was, recalling a story he was told by Namibia Football Association (NFA) president Frans Mbidi about how Hafeni scored three corners in one game. “My father would always tell me that I would never reach his standard and can’t beat the things that he used to do, he is a much better player than us, and he is still skilful,” Gebhardt said. Gebhardt said he was impressed by his father’s skills but things are different now, football now is more tactical than in the past and a player has to be mentally prepared for each game. “My family is always honoured that I’m always making it to the national team and my father is always encouraging me to continue doing well.” Having his brother in the premier league shows how good they are, he says. Andreas Gebhardt is a defensive midfielder at Tura Magic at just 22 years of age. “When I am off I always go watch him play and tell him afterwards where he did well and were he needs to improve,” he said. Football development The young footballer said the infrastructure in the country is not up to standard or just not there at all. He said football will improve if there are proper pitches and more coaches to take care of the young ones so that each team can have a stream of players coming from different age groups. “For example if a team has three different age groups it is better to promote them to the senior team and even more competitive, so the more and better infrastructure that we have the rest will flow, but again that all comes down to sponsorship, because one cannot run those leagues without funds so the better funding we get the more possible it is to run this clubs,” he said. Gebhardt said the best crop of Namibian footballers are those playing for premier league teams, and it is vital that more is invested in the clubs. “As a footballer you want to play for the top league in the country, it does not matter whether in the country, you obviously want to play for the top level and that is what kept me motivated,” he said. Abuse of drugs Gebhardt said he thinks players who abuse alcohol or drugs are just being naïve at times, especially when they know that they are at least earning enough football to keep going. “There are players in Namibia earning more than N$15 thousand, which I think is more than enough for one to live on, so why should you go out and abuse drugs, as a matter of fact if you are found doping you get burned and that is just for your downfall,” he stated. Challenges Gebhardt said he does not have any challenges at the moment, even though he is only living on his football salary. “I don’t really have challenges that I am faced with, because right now am making sure that I save money to sustain me when I retire from football, so that I can start any sort of business that interests me then,” he said. Lessons learned Gebhardt says playing six games in ten days at this year’s Cosafa Cup seems impossible but with the current coach they managed to pull through until the end. He said he learned to perform best when under pressure and always stays focused. He added that because of the way the team was prepared, they were fit enough for the tournament. He said if he gets an opportunity to play for a club anywhere in the world, he would grab it. “I wouldn’t mind playing for any team, but being a professional is what matters most, I am already doing things as a professional while playing local football because I am already taking care of myself, eating well, having enough sleep and always keeping fit,” he said. KAINO NGHITONGO