e18hteam at the Lusaka International Film and Music Festival

Barefeet Theatre Film Night at 2015 Festival hosted at
FreshView Cinemas Manda Hill.

Fresh off e18hteam's win at SVAFF, it is coming back to Lusaka! If you have missed it now is your chance.


The last time it showed was at Barefeet Theatre's Film Night. The film was so highly anticipated, it was over subscribed in the end and kids sat on the floor to accommodate the demand.  I love how much support we are getting from the capital city.  Thank you for your support

Get your tickets within the next week, if you haven't gotten to see it on the big screen yet, from Fresh View Cinema.

 

Friday 6th November

 

17:00

 

e18hteam

 

K100

 

Heads up, you will have to leave work early to beat traffic so plan accordingly. You are welcome for the week headstart to figure that out.

 

So glad people are still excited to go see it. Honoured to have it as part of closing night line up. Thank you to Charity Maruta for including the film this year.  She has been such a supporter since it premiered last year.  Wish LIFMF every success as it continues to grow in its second year and beyond.

 

& just like that I have me two tickets 4 the screening of @e18hteamhttps://twitter.com/e18hteam">@e18hteam

> whoop whoop #CelebrateZambianhttps://twitter.com/hashtag/CelebrateZambian?src=hash">#CelebrateZambian> #AmAboutThatLifehttps://twitter.com/hashtag/AmAboutThatLife?src=hash">#AmAboutThatLife> ❤ pic.twitter.com/b898LO0rzd&mdash">https://t.co/b898LO0rzd">pic.twitter.com/b898LO0rzd— That African Girl ❤ (@ThaAfricanGirl) October">https://twitter.com/ThaAfricanGirl/status/657518800611446784">October 23, 2015


For more information about all the local, African and global films showing, visit LIFMF website.

To keep up to date with e18hteam,  check the film out on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Top 10 of 2014: 3-4-10 e18hteam style (Woolgather Wednesday)

Photo taken by George Mutale
Chitenge Jumpsuit designed by Kamanga Wear

So another calendar year has bitten the dust...and once again it is time to take the customary look back at what I have blogged about in 2014. In keeping with tradition, I am curating my favourite posts in order of favouriteness, but unlike last year I actually have enough to choose from to make my quota yay!

To keep things fresh, I am going to use the my 3-4-10 format, which for a limited period has been usurped: it will now have an extra bonus inspired by the number 18 that has come to dominate my life due to the documentary I released last year about the Zambian National Football Team: e18hteam. Right now the film is the driving force in my life journey and the momentum from last year looks like I am to be propelled in directions I cannot even fathom. There is a whole world I am about to perceive and experience for the very first time and I am ready for it ;}.

So in honour of the exciting times ahead of me, I thought it fitting to reflect on last year.  Not just through the usual list of 10 posts that most resonated with my annum To better encapsulate the last 12 months, I am also sharing personal and professional lessons that have hopefully informed how I am setting up to grab 2015 by the ahems he he and continue to reach for my dreams as well as growing as a human being that has a positive effect on their community. So without further ado....

3 major lessons learned

1. Keep at it: tenacity + passion = success and with that the freedom to grow and be satisfied personally and professionally will follow.

2. It is more likely that the people you meet now may never truly know you as well as the people you have history with.  That means you need to be patient with them, they may not get you or what you do immediately and you will have to put in the effort to get them to see you and/ or to understand what you/ your work are about.

3. Don't let the bad eggs take you down with them. Find a way to maintain your principles, integrity, optimism and drive for life, change and the future.

4 mantras for 2015

1. Be healthier!

2. Stay positive - don't let the negative thrown at you sap your energy, dampen your spirit and put your soul in umbra.

3. Holiday! Celebrate! Take the time to go to la isla bonita: it can be a simple as a treat like a massage, 10 minute meditation every day, or as indulgent as a flight to the beach or an expensive bottle of wine.  It is important to take time out, take stock and find one's centre. And if you didn't get all the Madonna 80s references, I can't help you.

4. Be you. It's enough. You have a place in the world and that is why you are here.

Top 10 posts of 2014

1. Kindness Ate the Quail

2. Happy Golden Jubilee Independence Zambia!

3. Ghanaian Food and Drink Photo Journal

4. e18hteam: Using the Power of Film to Speak

5. Africa is THE Continent Part II

6. Are You the Last One Standing?

7. The Illusion of Space for Multiple Stories and Identities

8. Hair Ninjas and Afrolicious Samurais

9. Innovation, Passion and Zambia

10. #BringBackOurGirls

And as promised the bonus:

This was THE song for me last year as I finished and premiered e18hteam. I found the strength within to push through the set backs and I will keep going, don't care if I am wrong coz I know I am right to see what others don't. That's where progress loves to hang out and you know I love evolution. Here's to another year of the spectacular, the gift of being alive, free to explore the expanse of our imaginations and finding ways to manifest our ideas and dreams to share with the world we live in xo.

FYI this video was filmed in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia :)))))))))))!

An e18hteam Christmas...

Merry Merry! It's been a cracker of a year. Taking time to absorb, digest and regroup to be ready for the New Year and the possibilities it will bring.

If you are in Lusaka this festive holiday season, from today: Christmas Eve to Boxing Day, my documentary about the Zambian National Football Team, e18hteam, is showing at Fresh View Manda Hill daily at 15:20.

Till 2015, cheerio!

Soul Food Friday: Happy Golden Jubilee Zambia!

I am proud to be Zambian at this very moment, and to have preserved an important part of our history by documenting the story of the Zambian National Football team through e18hteam.  By preserving this history, I have not let another African library burn down, as is usual when the elder who had all the knowledge takes his wisdom, experience and part of the country's conscious with him upon his passing.  I was able to document Zambia's history through football by managing to interview the late great Dennis Liwewe and I have let those who created this thread which is interwoven in Zambia's 50 year tapestry, spin their tale. The fact that people can look back and remember and be inspired by the future is so humbling.  I have really felt the love and the privilege of being part of Zambia's Golden Jubilee celebrations.  It is truly and honour and a thrill walking taking the sojourn into responsibility while doing what I love and finally reaping the fruits of my passion for Zambia, communication, preservation (history). and inspiration.

Enjoy the day, and remember our accomplishments and feel the hope for the future.  We afriCAN and WILL continue to discover, reconnect with, and reach our potential!  Only positivity today...and tomorrow...and the next day...That is how to apply constructive criticism: reassess, acknowledge past mistakes by moving forward with mphamvu! I have openly acknowledged my country's and my own flaws on the blog.  Today is all about being in the moment, happy and hopeful and appreciative of the blessings that Zambia has given me since I relocated in 2011 and made the decision to make my country my base and work from the inside out, not the outside in :).

Here are the highlights of the past week of celebrations:

Meeting with Zambia's current Second Lady, Charlotte Scott the day before the Premiere on Wednesday16th October:

Writer, Director and Producer of e18hteam Juan Rodriguez-Briso,
Zambia's Second Lady Charlotte Scott
and co-Producer of e18hteam Ngosa Chungu aka Mwana Ba Afrika

Kept to dress code - rocked #ProudlyZambian #PositivelyAfrican custom Kamanga Wear High Waisted Tuxedo African Jacquard Trousers with Copper jewelry bought at Kutowa Designs made by women's empowerment initiative www.free-zambia.org:

Our co-producer @whoops_c & writer director producer @juanbriso tore up the red carpet! #e18hteam #DidYouKnoWednesday http://t.co/QldMCDy2B9
— e18hteam (@e18hteam) October 22, 2014

Personal screening for my favourite Zambian President, Kenneth Kaunda, founding father and first Head of State of independent Zambia, organised by Samba Yonga through his daughter Cheswa Kaunda:

L -R: e18hteam Publicty Manager Samba Yonga of Ku-Atenga Media,
Cheswa Kaunda, KK's daughter, e18hteam co-Producer Ngosa Chungu,
First President of the Republic of Zambia Kenneth Kaunda aka KK,
e18hteam Premiere Special Guest Former Chipolopolo Coach Roald Poulsen,
e18hteam Writer, Director and Producer Juan Rodriguez-Briso.

This is what I wore to Muvi TV interview on Wednesday 22nd October for the Morning show as dresscode was Zambian colours:

Happy Golden Jubilee #Zambia! Celebrating #ZambiaAt50 #fwika style #ProudlyZambian #PositivelyAfrican #PellieFun xo pic.twitter.com/ZPMeIGwhHm
— Ngosa Chungu (@whoops_c) October 24, 2014

Schedule for today till the 29th to catch e18hteam at Fresh View Cinemas Levy Park daily:

Reflective post to come later.  Right now still recovering from the madness over the past month bring e18hteam to Zambia in time for our 50th Independence Anniversary celebrations. Awesome Possum! Much love xo

Official photos for e18hteam taken by George Mutale.

To keep up-to-date with my surreal journey follow me on Facebook.

Soul Food Friday: e18hteam - the Fruit of Passion

I have started a new tag called Passion Fruit.  It's all about how passion bears fruit. For me, e18hteam has been the hardest thing I have ever attempted to achieve in my life.  My sweat has literally watered the earth from whence the fruit that e18hteam blossomed.  My passion for the story of the Chipolopolo triumphing at AFCON 2012 in Gabon after suffering tragedy there in 1993 never wavered.  My belief in the project never waned due to the fact that I could not have partnered with a better hombre than Juan.  At one point I said to Juan that I would completely understand if he felt I had not adequately contributed to the project as, as is still the case, I have not been able to convince a single Zambian business to support any part of the project, even the fun part - the glitzy Premiere.  He believed in my passion and had no doubt I was doing my best and has stuck by me.  I am honoured to still be a part of this project and continue endeavour to earn my credit as co-producer.  If I fill up the seats with my social and traditional media plan then I will feel vindicated.

This film, despite me knowing the story and having a part in creating it, has touched the very core of my being.  I am proud to say, it moved me to tears when I watched the first rough cut months ago.  We are now locking the film and to present it to Zambians on the 17th of October, a week before Zambia's Golden Jubliee Independence celebrations on the 24th.  I am also proud that Juan has successfully gotten the film to show at SEMINCI in his home town Valladolid in Spain on the eve before Independence day.  If you are in the area, catch the film at SEMINCI.  It will be showing at LAVA, 19:00 on the 23rd of October.

I  leave you with video that has me excited and I hope it gets you revved up to see the film too:

Leelee who wrote the awesome possum Nkwazi article about e18hteam had me on radio and commented:

@leelabee "zambian film of the year" from only 5 mins of #e18hteam?! #humbled #chipolopolo @juanbriso @whoops_c pic.twitter.com/c7fWa3MM1Z
— e18hteam (@e18hteam) September 26, 2014

Juan sent the screen test in Spain which made me all warm inside:

Here is the official trailer for the film :)

To keep up-to-date with my passion fruit follow e18hteam on Twitter and like on Facebook.  You can also find other articles on my film production journey in the e18hteam tag.

Things on Thursday: e18hteam Tings

It's been a pretty big week for the film. I am focusing on the positive at the moment: publicity is going well.  The press are starting to report on the documentary and engagement continues to steadily increase on social media.  So the fact that, to date, no Zambian business has contributed to the film which is fine coz we managed without them, but now I have no idea how I am going to host the Premiere, which is expected due to the story being told and it being released a week before our 50th Independence Anniversary.  

It's my job as co-producer to find the money to do things.  Honestly, my passion for the story and the film has not translated to funds beyond what I have been able to scrap together over the years from my own pocket through presenting and social media jobs here in Zambia. This has frustrated me greatly as I have tried several different strategies to no avail.  You'd think that football, Zambia and the glitz of film would be a no brainer here.  I have been proven wrong for the last 2 years.  But as Steve Jobs said "stay hungry, stay foolish".  With a production partner like Juan, who has gone above and beyond to make this film, and has taken on the lion's share of the financial burden, it's not that hard to do that :).  

That is also why I changed the Amashiwi quotes on the blog to include Winston Churchill's "success consists of going from failure to failure without the loss of enthusiasm".  Even if organisations seem to be swayed by the Chipolopolo's performance and every time I need some help they decided to perform abysmally.  I continue support our national team through thick and thin, despite their secret conspiracy to thwart my efforts.  It would have been great if they started their AFCON 2015 qualifying campaign with a bang, rather than fizzling out after being paralysed to a nil draw against Os Mambas (The Black Mamba's aka Mocambique) and the venom taking hold by the time they got to Cape Verde last week, losing 2-1. You see my theory is not wholly unfounded and without merit.

Things are going well in large part due to Samba Yonga of Ku Atenga Media aka Grand Mukhazi in the Ndhlovukazi's matriach's circle aka Purple Tembo Media's publicity team:

Matriarch's circle is @e18hteam promotion team: Ndhlovukhazi @whoops_c Grand Mukhazi (Grand Woman) @Kuwaha pic.twitter.com/TNxWh1ymaG...
— Purple Tembo Media (@PurpleTembo) September 12, 2014

She is behind getting this great article written by Leelee Ngwenya about e18hteam features in the September/ October Issue of Proflight's Nkwazi Inflight Magazine. The magazine is FREE, MAHALA, GRATIS so get your copy to see it in all its glory.  Don't worry, if you aren't in Zambia or flying anytime soon I have scanned the article ;}.

Click to embiggen for easier reading :)

Slam Dunk Records TV and Inspire Abantu have posted the press release for the film to help get the word out.

This teaser seems to be the one that everyone who has seen them seems to be the most touched by.  I also think it's the most powerful.  Dennis Liwewe was our most prolific football pundit and a great ambassador for the game and Zambia.  It was an honour to interview him.

If you want to know more about writer, director and producer Juan Rodriguez-Briso, watch this Behind the Scenes video about his passion for football, how inspirational the story of the Chipolopolo is and about how we connected to co-produce e18hteam.

We revealed our official poster for the film yesterday during #DidYouKnoWednesday.  The exact release date is 17th October 2014 so mark your calendars and start saving your ngwees to make up the Kwacha you need for a ticket.

In theatres 17th October 2014 

Chipolopolo ana chimfya: The Chipololopolo triumphed in both Nyanja and Bemba.

To keep up with all things e18hteam, follow the film on Twitter so as not to miss out on weekly #DidYouKnoWednesday event, and like on Facebook for exclusive content only posted there.  You can find all my posts chronically my journey making e18hteam here.

Twit Tuesday: e18hteam Behind the Scenes Video and #PTHerd Prince chat

As you know I have my reservations about Twitter, but what I love about the social media platform is the ease at which conversation can be fostered.  Hence I am happily a twit now with no regrets, especially as being one has helped me with content for the blog.

This post is dedicated to Sam Ndhlovu.

Right now, Twitter is the primary communication tool with which e18hteam is able to be brought to the masses at no cost, and the ability and ways to provide information to those who want it is unlimited.  Here is a Storify of last week's events on my production company and e18hteam's Twitter pages that revolved around my favourite little ones, Sam Ndhlovu aka the Purple Tembo Herd Prince.

To know more about how to become a part of the Purple Tembo Herd royal family, follow Sam on Twitter and see how it's done. Jedi master must you be.  Only way to Sam defeat.  From this Yoda take it ha ha ha ha.

You can find other storify stories I have published here.

e18hteam: #PTHerd rewards and #DidYouKnoWednesday

I started writing a coupla weeks ago about the documentary film I am co-producing with Spanish partner-in-crime Juan Rodriguez-Briso.  There I began my impassioned recording of why I started my production company Purple Tembo Media and how the Chipolopolo's AFCON 2012 win was the catalyst to me pursuing that thread of my storytelling dreams. I always knew I would be some kind of filmmaker.  Funnily enough, I became a writer before that, something I never thought I would never have the discipline for.  Blogging started me on a journey when its path had been illuminated in my mind after I decided I wanted to create proudly Zambian and positively African content with mpamvu (literally power, here I mean umph or as MIghTy African would say vim he he he) in 2010 after completing my masters.

So what is the film about?

It is the universal story of the underdog, forever underestimated, but never discourage to achieve the very best when challenged.  Akin to folklore of old, it is a recounting of the age-old message urging us to continue to fight in order to reach the heights of success.  This is an epic sanctioned by divine decree, that ensured nothing would stand in the way of pure intentions, hard work, determination, and ultimately, destiny.  This is the emotional and now legendary football journey of an African nation, spanning five decades.  It is the path taken by a country bound together by a tragedy that shook the nation, which then spurred them to honour their fallen heroes by playing the beautiful game at the highest level.  This is the recounting of Zambia's rich football history, derailed by the tragic plane crash off the coast of Gabon in 1993, only to be triumphant in the same country at the momentus AFCON 2012 tournament.  This is the opportunity to record, preserve and share  this amazing story with the world.  This is the documentary film telling the story of the unrelenting and victorious Chipolopolo: the Copper Bullets aka the Zambian National Football Team.

So you are hooked by my verbose, superfluous and dramatically African introduction eh? Want to know more?

Created by current @PurpleTembo #PTHerd Prince Sam

If you follow these instructions you are not a twit, in fact you are rather smart.  Now you can keep up to date with the film, find out why it is called e18hteam (pronouced eighteam), when it will be released and where it will be showing.  Every hump day you'll enjoy #DidYouKnoWednesday with facts about Zambia, the Chipolopolo, football and of course the documentary.

Mutanda Falls in #Solwezi #Zambia is beautiful and shallow enough to stand in and fish! #DidYouKnoWednesday #e18hteam http://t.co/jnejxbcCYI
— e18hteam (@e18hteam) August 20, 2014

Go one step further and join the Purple Tembo Herd race and you will be rewarded.  Help spread the word about the film and who knows what royal titles and gifts will be bestowed upon you.

Post by Purple Tembo Media.

Recap: Like and follow e18hteam, like and follow Purple Tembo.  Good things come to kind people.  Here is a cheat sheet to help you out.

I thank you for liking, commenting, sharing, following, tweeting and retweeting in advance xo

e18hteam: Using the Power of Film to Speak

Zambian Theatre release: October 2014

True to my word, I have enjoyed the World Cup, and just as football gave me voice to start blogging four years ago, it continues to inspire me. So I am officiallly back, ready to communicate and to indulge my love of words with ease.  I am proud that the essence of who I am as a writer and what created this blog for still rings true as I professed and promised in my inaugural post.  Let me just say how I am even prouder of never letting the standard of posts go down just to keep the blog current, and that I continue to take the time I need to regenerate when necessary, and that whenever I come back, I come back with a vengeance he he he.  This sleeping lioness has once again awakened, and she is out for blood.  No mucking about, straight for the jugular.  We do things royal here, no mediocre, only the regal will do for me, and for you :)...

 © Football Association of Zambia

So what causes me to break my silence?  I already have alluded to what I am about to reveal before.  On February 12, 2012, the Zambian National Team: the Chipolopolo achieved the dreams of a nation.  They not only won AFCON 2012 for the first time, but also honoured the dead: the Chipolopolo who died in a tragic plane crash off the coast of the Gabon, the very country in which we then triumphed.  When they won in 2012, the first thing I thought of was documenting their momentous win, after screaming like a banshee and shedding emotional and proud tears.  It was more than just Zambia's first raising of the Africa Cup of Nations:

Their efforts embodied 50 years of the Zambian National Team carrying the hopes and dreams of a nation.  50 years of potential almost realised, but never quite producing at the highest level, until AFCON 2012.  Most of all, this was facing our loss and allowing it to heal by soldiering on in the very place where we had suffered an inconsolable pain, despite the odds stacked against us:  we had to defeat more well-known and higher ranked African teams that had played at the World Cup, and the weight of sorrow could have burdened us and hindered us.  Instead the Chipolopolo found a way to soar like the nkwazis (eagles) we Zambians all have the power to be, and raised our flag proudly in honor of those we lost, preserving their place in history by winning on their behalf.  

As my beloved country turns 50, I am honoured to be able to give this gift to the people.  I may have a turbulent relationship with the place of my birth, but the best relationships ebb and flow - there will always be that tug-of-war to remind you to be present and to make sure to give as much as you take.  I thrive in the conflict that my Afropolitan identity creates as it clashes with some of the more static and stagnant elements in the Zambian environment.  It allows my creativity to thrive by causing me to turn inward to figure out new ways to express myself in ways authentic to my soul and freeing to my spirit in order contribute to the communities I engage and/ or identify with.  The moment it happened I knew I  too could achieve some of my dreams through their success. I could finally become a filmmaker by documenting this seminal moment in history, and could go one step further by preserving this story for future generations.  One of the recurring themes on this blog is legacy, the other is capturing an African experience in the 21st century and populating the internet with more content produced by the continent, so we can tell our own stories now and in perpetuity.  As a media professional, and a passionate Afropolitan, I am taking advantage of the multiple ways afforded to me. Film is another way to do that.  I formed my production company Purple Tembo Media because of how inspired I was watching the Chipolopolo continue to triumph despite being written off as the underdog.  Triumphing when underestimated is one of my favourite things to achieve and to see unfold in others.

I can now also freely share this journey with you on the blog and on social media.  There will be a series of blogposts about this that will be curated in the e18hteam tag.  In the meantime please like the following on Facebook and follow on Twitter to follow my journey through this film:

MbA on Facebook and Twitter

The documentary film about the Chipolopolo: e18hteam on Facebook and Twitter

Top 10 Posts of 2012

As you can see I spent a lot of time in the bundus.
This was my first day of shooting in Kalomo,
Southern Province, Zambia.

Though  I did make a quick post in January, Happy New Year for the blog always starts with the Top 10 of the year before.  So Happy New Year seeing as I don't really believe in new year starting on the 1st of January coz sometimes you just aren't ready.  This year I had a lot more to contend with.  Finally got traction in my professional life and got more than I bargained for, so from November 2012 to March 2013 I was somewhere in 8 of the 10 provinces in Zambia researching, script-writing and filming the Today with Zamtel show.  After that was working on my documentary film project, then I went on a social media break and then I fell ill.  So forgive me he he he he ;}.

Yes traditionally things commence anew in January but let's face it, some of us are not organised enough to be ready to start afresh when the Gregorian calender dictates, and seeing as this blog's new year technically is in May, as it was founded in that month in 2010, starting when ready has become a bit of a (bad?) habit.  Last year we (yes I am using the Royal we) were together by February and what I said then still rings true now:  It's not when you start, it's the starting that's important.

Luckily I am recovering well and can get back into the swing of things and get back writing for me not for anyone else. So without further ado here are the Top 10 Posts of 2012 with my favouritest first of course:

1.   Mobile Tales: Part 1 - The Blues

2.   Polychronic Global Music Mix

3.   Zed Culture Part IV: Monochronic vs. Polychronic

4.   Chipolopolo Stunner

5.   Joyeux Jour De L'Afrique Tout Le Monde

6.   We Are Better Than That

7.   Zed Culture Part II: Happy 48th Zed

8.   Positively Woman

9.   Bullet Wounds

10. Zed Culture Part III: A Call to Arms

Check out the two MUNTUs I was able to post about too: Duncan and Towani.

I like the fact that most of these posts are Zambian themed.  I think this marks me finally becoming connected with my national identity after decades of feeling constantly on the fringe, never really able to find my place in my country's society.  YAY! I write this while also having a crisis of faith as I ponder moving to South Africa to be more creatively free.  What would life be if there weren't such conundrums to torture one's soul...

Bullet Wounds

Had they not qualified, this bag would have been used to
you know what - it has their name on it so clearly..;}  

So the Chipolopolo have qualified to AFCON 2013.  I should be happy about this but I am not.  Why? Because the fashion in which they achieved this was ridiculous.  African champions do not give a lacklustre performance at home only giving them a 1-0 cushion to carry to Uganda, where they then play like they have no mphamvu, let the Cranes score to even the tally and then have to take it to a penalty shoot-out that ends up being longer than the one that secured their victory earlier in the year! UNACCEPTABLE!!!!!!! Why, Zambia, why do we act like this?! I say this because anyone who represents our country acts as ambassadors for the people.  Their behaviour indicates to the world what kind of people we are.  Clearly we are back to being the jokers that we have been.  Instead of using the opportunity afforded by our AFCON win to continue to fulfil our potential, we are reverting back to our underachiever ways. Instead of catalysing our success into becoming a recognised African football powerhouse like our Ghanaian and Ivorian friends, we are complacent and relying on luck.  We are a Christian nation but let me tell you, God only helps those who help themselves.  I don't know who helped us on Saturday but it was certainly not God because we did nothing to deserve the win we got.

I don't know what I would have done if we had not qualified and had the opportunity to play at the World Cup 2010 venues and defend our title.  That should have been incentive enough but it clearly wasn't   Pundits said before the match that we shouldn't worry about the Chipolopolo performance at home because the boys have evolved from being motivated by money as they were rewarded handsomely for their efforts and now it is self-esteem and pride for their nation that will carry them through, the bonus they will get for qualifying was inconsequential.  From the way they played they couldn't care less about ego, money, the nation or anything. The only way to really describe how I feel about their performance is to give you another convo with SPORTS GUZA like I did the last time I was exasperated and wounded by friendly fire:

SG: Have you seen the picture quality? S***ty

MbA: As always. I've even stopped commenting on that.  Renard is wearing black jeans, not blue ones.  If we lose that's why.  I'm very superstitious.  Next he'll chop off his hair!

SG: Ahhhh no we need the hair and skinny jeans.

MbA: The jeans are still skinny but they are black.  Then the shirt colour will change...

SG: Jinx!

MbA: This is not the time for experimentation

SG: Ok, signing off till afterwards....

At half time:

SG: We are clearly out of our depth

MbA: Drugs, just drugs! Was waiting for you to reopen comms. WTF?!!!!!!

SG: No pushing...hesitant

MbA: Ah it's like they don't know how to play football:  Complete panic when in possesion, making long loopy passes and being dispossessed as soon as the ball comes to our feet.  This is it, jeez!  It will be over in 45 if we aren't careful.  We didn't cushion ourselves well at home

SG: No we didn't, lousy game.  

After penalty shoot out that needed 11 rounds for us to win 10-9.

SG: Dude do you feel what I'm feeling? Gutted?

MbA: And the penalty by [Christopher] Katongo to start - says it all.  Since Ug scored I have not felt well.  This is not how you qualify man! We didn't need this amount of stress! I can't even be happy it's too hot and I couldn't eat.  I'm hungry!

SG: I started crying (This is a woman who doesn't cry)

MbA:  I almost cried but I was so hungry so I almost threw up instead (Was going to get lunch at half time but I was so wired I couldn't eat so by the time this was all over I was nauseated) Too much for me too much! I almost died watching the Gabon penalties

SG: I am still in shock

MbA: And you do this just to qualify and these penalties went longer and we started badly.  Bl**dy disrespectful to us fans.  I'm f**king pissed, can't even enjoy qualification

SG: This goes on your blog

MbA: Of course it does!

We both had to go out later to calm down and remember that life is good.

To make it worse,  while watching ZNBC news later to hear what the country had to say, one stupid kambwanga of a man from Kabwe was talking about that loser Clifford Mulenga and how he was needed.  Dude broke curfew during the QF and was suspended and did not participate in the SF or the Final or take a penalty to get the AFCON win.  During the time he played he did not score or do anything singular that could attribute to our advancement through the tournament in 2012.  He is not our talisman.  He is a joker and a fool who missed out on a great opportunity because he could not compute the seriousness and the meaning of us playing in the very country that our men perished almost 20 years before.  GET A GRIP PEOPLE AND STOP FOCUSING ON NONSENSE!!!

Herve and the boys need to regroup. The spirits of our fallen heroes carried them to victory but now it is now up to the Chipolopoloto continue on their own steam to greater heights.  The eagle on our flag is there for a reason: it is to remind us that we are regal, that we can soar and conquer and that we can control our own destiny. NAPAPATA get it together before AFCON 2013!

Chipolopolo Stunner

Time to get back to the drawing board, we
have some wrinkles to iron out!

 Do not let the title of this post confuse you.  We were not the "Stunners" we were at AFCON earlier this year, what was stunner about our first World Cup qualifying match is that we lost in the most humiliating fashion to Sudan.  I cannot describe how I feel any better than with my Facebook status update after the stunner of a loss:

Chipolopolo check your aim: instead of shooting down hawks in the desert, you have wounded your own people! My heart is bleeding, this is not the way champions reach higher heights. You are with the big boys now, step it up!

You can see just how stunned (yes I keep using the word coz I mean we were just blindsided man!) the nation was by the articles like this one in the Lusaka Times.  We couldn't even write about the defeat in detail it was so painful.  For a full breakdown of the match you can read this article and SuperSport really added insult to injury by juxtaposing how Les Éléphants have bounced back from their runners-up effort at AFCON to win their first qualifing match 2-0 against Tanzania while we fell from grace 2-0 to Sudan :(.

When you are at the top, to stay there you need to work harder and keep improving and not rest on your laurels as everyone is gunning to topple you to prove they are the best!  And Sudan have brought us from heights that quite clearly have made us dizzy-drunk with glory that we have been blinded into thinking the World Cup qualification is going to just fall into our laps! Sudan made this sobering episode in our post-AFCON history even worse as they infuriatingly performed every dirty trick in the book to waste time, fake injury and slow play down in a myriad of ways.  Really they should be ashamed of themselves, that sort of play does not belong in football, it sullies the beautiful game...Drogba looks like a saint when compared to the actions of the Sudanese team on Saturday! To further describe the disappointment and rage my beloved national team invoked with their lacklustre performance, I quote excerpts of my whatsapp convo with SPORTS GUZA:

SPORTS GUZA (SG): Is the game on SuperSport? ZNBC has no picture!

MbA: No

SG: OMG! 1st game after AFCON and we get this?

MbA: It took so long for ZNBC to confirm they would have a feed so not surprised they mucked up

SG: Idiots

MbA: They do this for the Ghana game next week there'll be riots coz that game is more important

SG: Yeah and it's on home ground

MbA: Exactly no excuse

We then decided to have radio silence till the game was over but then after the 2nd goal SPORTS GUZA, who had enacted the silence was the first to break it:

SG: Ouchhhhhhhhhh this really sucks

MbA: Dude! This is pitiful, Renard is even subdued! AFCON has past we need to prove ourselves all over again and not rest on our laurels.  So frigging upset. I know we are playing away but jeez we have a full team

SG: Yup and it proves what I said all the teams we will be playing want to prove something

MbA: Of course when you are at the top everyone wants to pull you down.  You have to work even harder to stay at the heights after you have climbed up there!

SG: The national soccer team hasn't had any practice since our win, FAZ claimed they didn't need it...Instead they were busy running with the trophy all over the country

MbA: I'm so angry I could shoot these bullets with my own copper

SG: From your wiring in the house?

MbA: AFCON is gone we have a new challenge, the World Cup won't just drop in our laps from the sky! Ha ha ha foolish, I have my own mine.

Full time is called and we have lost 2-0 to Sudan.

MbA: No words. Will have to blog about this when I calm down!

SG: Do so tomorrow: Talk about the lack of preparedness i.e. no friendlies, arriving in Sudan at midnight the day of the match, experimental formation, trophy tour and next week...

MbA:  Dude I'm speechless, tomorrow I shall write and post Monday.  Ivorians, Ghanaians, Eygytians all off to good starts jeez!

I was rendered speechless, a state normally foreign to me, but now I have regrouped and although this loss was painful, we can bounce back and World Cup qualification is still within our reach.  WE CANNOT PLAY LIKE THIS AGAINST THE BLACK STARS NEXT WEEK!!!!! So here are some things for the team to ponder, rectify and/ or take into account to regroup and remember how to be champions before next Saturday at Levy Stadium in Ndola:

Coach Renard: Have you been spending too much time washing your white shirts with all the free Boom detergent you have been supplied with now that you endorse the brand and not enough time figuring out strategy? Is your shirt so blindingly white now that the one you were wearing on the sidelines obscured your view with brightness so you couldn't see how Sudan kwempad us coz I didn't see your usual frenetic shouting of direction and encouragement during the course of the match? I suggest you go back to AFCON ways, the detergent you were using before kept your shirts white and your coaching skills were not affected.

Christopher Katongo:  Though you did try to motivate by example as you did at AFCON you were still not as effective as you were in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.  With 3 endorsements, I think that you have had too much money to spend so you think you have made it and do not need to do as much work now that you are a champion.  To stay a champion and a great leader you have to keep working hard so get it together.

Mayuka: Were you even on the pitch?!  

Mweene: That farm you have been given coupled with the free Pepsi you are getting from that endorsement deal are making you fat on chicken and soda. Plus I'm sure you are eating desert too with free Parmalat custard (though I don't blame you that stuff is crack and heaven in a carton)!  If that is not true, then how were you not agile enough to stop being hoodwinked not once but TWICE!!!! And the second time was worse, they caught you napping coz you were busy yapping!  My favourite Chipolopolo, please do not cause me pain, life is hard enough as it is...

The rest of you, what is your explanation?! Find out what went wrong and fix it!!!!  I shall be checking in on you next week...

ORANGE POWER: Chipolopolo Continue Their Bloody Rampage and Les Elephants Stampede Their Way To The Final

Proudly Zambian :)

WOWWEEEEEEEE!!! Last night was an excellent footie extravaganza!  The AFCON semis did not dissappoint! The Chipololo have continued to show why Zambia is a football nation and what passion we have for the game by continuing to shoot to kill and have made us proud.  I have been watching AFCON 2012 from the group stage of course and will recap everything in a round-up post after the Final. For now, I just want to bask in the Chipolopolo's valiant and successful bid to reach the AFCON Final since 1994, which was a year after the tragic loss of our most promising national team off the coast of Gabon in a plane accident.  How fitting it is that almost 20 years after that tragedy, we are honouring the players by reaching the Final in the manner we have.

Semi 1: Chipolopolo vs the Black Stars (Zambia vs Ghana)

We started off with all cylinders firing and confirmed Gyan's fears that we were going to be a force to be reckoned with.  That lasted for all of 5 minutes when Ghana made their first surge which sent our defenders into a state of panic and by the 7th minute Gyan was awarded a penalty and Zambia had their first yellow card.  However, no one could have predicted that Gyan would fumble and make the most uncommitted and timid penalty attempts and that Mweene would make a great save to keep Zambia's hopes alive! Was he intimidated? I don't think so.  I think Gyan is rusty from playing in the Middle East.  Pathetic attempt in the semifinal of an AFCON championship! However, this did have a positive effect on the rest of the Black Stars who changed gears and ramped up the pressure, and for the rest of the first half Ghana assaulted the Zambian goal by continually flustering defenders and if it wasn't for Mweene's goalkeeping poise, grace and determination we would have been down 3/4-0 by half time! While Ghana constantly questioned us, we sporadically showed what we were capable at the other end.



At this point I was in conniptions as it is no secret that Ghana is my favourite African team and I was already distraught that my national team had to play them! My rickety ticker was letting me know that I am too old for this sort of match. I was starting to think that Renard had spent too much time picking out which blue jeans and white shirt he was to wear out of all of the blue jeans and white shirts he dons on the sidelines at matches and even more likely that he spent too much time in the mirror individually placing each strand of hair in its proper place! However Renard proved that you can be metrosexual and a master football tactician by bringing in his secret weapon: Mayuka the Bazuka who was substituted in for the second half.  He showed Ghana that when you have an opportunity to score you not only take it but you make sure the ball hits the net with a beautiful goal within 20 minutes of being on the pitch. My theory is that Renard wanted to keep Mayuka fresh in case we were down by halftime so he could salvage our hopes if need be.



About 10 minutes to go we started to get a bit cocky with fancy dribbles and things and though I love me some football flair, the game was not won yet. Up 1-0 is not enough to be complacent, especially with the calibre of  team such as Ghana, who kept pummelling and probing in our half till the bitter end.  Thank God for Renard who continued shouting like a banshee although I didn't hear  him tell the boys to hang on for "2 minooootes" like he did in the group stages, which got him a mancrush from one of the BBC commentators who unfortunately did not cover this game as I have enjoyed him expressing his love for Renard's antics and accent.

Man of the match without shadow of  a doubt was Mweene: if he hadn't protected our goal so valiantly throughout the game and particularly during the first half's constant barrage from the Black Stars, by the time Mayuka scored, his goal would have been meaningless.  Absolutely awesome possum!  Fantastic goalkeeping display!

Honourable mentions: Of course to win you have to score and Mayuka showed how you shoot stars out of the sky. Absolute clutch performance! Jordan Ayew was the source of most of Ghana's chances.  His work on the wings to feed the ball into the box were absolutely brilliant.  Both these young lads show great promise and I look forward to seeing them play in the future.

I can't believe I'm saying Gyan was the worst player.  I am really not happy with him at all.  May he go back to Sunderland and play football at a higher level as playing in the Middle East has rusted his football brain.  His penalty attempt was so lacklustre and his performance lacked precision and true direction, commitment and dare I say passion?! His miss at the 2010 World Cup quarters was forgiveable as it was just an unfortunate game for Ghana altogether but there was just no excuse last night. His performance was just as bad as Senegal's overall performance in the group stages.  A complete waste of talent!

Semi 2: Les Elephants vs Les Aigles (Cote D'Ivoire vs Mali)

Cote D'Ivoire have been focused, humble and determined the whole of AFCON and it is clear that they are remedying the underperformance that has plagued them in the last 10 years.  They have trampled their competition, scoring 8 goals and conceding none.  And they continued to keep a clean sheet by never giving the Eagles the chance to soar in true Elephant style by keeping them firmly on the ground, stamping on them and finally burying them by winning the match. It was incredibly physical but with Cote D'Ivoire firmly in control.  Nothing happened unless they allowed it to. They stampeded their way to the Final in style :)

Man of the match was definitely Gervinho who finally has found his form with his first goal of the tournament, and what better a time to find it!  His run from beyond the half-way line, leaving Malian after Malian in the dust and finishing off his efforts with a beautiful strike culminated in grabbing the lead in the dying minutes of the first half and ultimately secured Cote D'Ivoire's progression to the Final on Sunday. His coverage of the pitch, his ball skills and his striking precision created one of the most sublime moments of AFCON 2012 for sure!



Honourable mentions: Cote D'Ivoire defenders protected their goalkeeper and Barry had little to do the whole game and no goals were conceded once again.  The Toure brothers were impactful in the back, midfield and in the box through the middle and Gosso did the same on the wings.  Kalou was impactful in the box trying to make things happen despite being clearly hampered by his hamstring injury. It is no secret that I  do not like Drogba and his style of play which involves divo (if you don't know that's male for diva) antics among other things which I have expressed before, but he has shown a maturity on the football pitch during AFCON and particularly in this game in which he was not his best but he tried to make and impact in the box and elsewhere on the field and at times when he fell and would have normally appealed for a penalty or free kick he picked himself up, dusted himself off and just got on with it.  I wonder if his game was affected by the fact his wife is Malian? Talk about awkward!

Worst player was clearly Seydou Keita.  He has been a brat all tournament and continued his petulant streak  by arguing with the ref and finding dubious ways to get fouls and cards against his opponents.  I love Barca, they are my fav team in Europe and a lot of that has to do with their professionalism and clean playing style.  These dirty tactics clearly come from Keita himself when left to his own devices.  He should be ashamed he did nothing on that football pitch but show that he has a rotten personality.

Now although my favourite animal is the elephant and I am vehemently against poaching, come Sunday I expect Zambia to use copper bullets to shoot some elephants and take ivory as trophies, I want them to storm the beach and capture the coast! At the beginning of the tournament I expected Zambia to carry me to the quarters and for my favourite African teams Ghana and/ or Ivory Coast to take over and keep me invested in the Final.  Zambia have shown that indeed "this is our time" as our Skipper, Christopher Katongo decreed before the semis. I am very proud of my national team's passion, determination and execution and expect another bloodbath of a footie match.

Now to make sure we win we have to play like we did against Senegal in the group stages and more importantly we have to win the toss to wear orange jerseys.  As the scientific findings from the semis show, teams in orange won, those in white lost. If Les Elephants lose the toss they wear white, upping their chances to lose and giving us even more of a chance to win when coupled with the power of us wearing the orange jersey.  For those skeptics who will bring up the Dutch wearing orange and losing in the 2010 World Cup Final I will kindly inform them that the Dutch only had one element in common with the teams that won the AFCON semis and that is the orange jersey, but those who hail from Holland are not from the motherland.  Being African brings the juju element in so Zambian sangomas do your thing: we want the ORANGE coz we know what to do with it and that's WIN ;}

CHIPOLOPOLO, NAFUTI! NAFUTI! (AGAIN! AGAIN!)

Blood Sport

I know we Africans have a special passion for football.  I talked about this during my World Cup Fever period probably ad nauseum. This unfortunate event in Zambia shows that our love for football can be twisted.  The loss of life here was unnecessary.  We have a particular passion for English football, all you have to do is look at the minibuses emblazoned with their love for Premier League teams.  However, this was one match and not an important one at that.  I am really happy that Chelsea beat Man U coz I really can't stand them and their fans are even worse but there was no need for things to come to this. :( is all I have to say...That and I'll bleed blue forever...

Me, Chelsea Stadium, March 2009

There is a way to love the game without turning it into a blood sport.  Stampedes are very common in Africa at stadiums in particular.  That is usually due to poor infrastructure.  Let us not exacerbate the problem by causing unnecessary loss of life at bars and other viewing venues.

Regeneration

Usually to regenerate I watch films and sport.  However, this is heavy season in Hollywood and even though I enjoyed Black Swan immensely, it did nothing for my mental peace! Sooooo good I highly recommend.  I also highly recommend the King's Speech.  Very excited for Oscar night...





Unfortunately, I cannot rely on Chelsea for a pick-me-up either seeing as it seems their good fortune has gone down the toilet since their brilliant start to the season.  I have no idea why Torres is now on the squad, I feel another Schevschenko (no idea if that is the right spelling and I don't care that is how much I couldn't stand his uselessness) coming on and I am not amused. AT ALL.

And to make it worse, Rafa got injured at the Aussie Open (yes it has taken me this long to recover from seeing him reduced to tears as he fought on so as not to retire in the quarter finals against his countryman Ferrer).  After such a brilliant 2010, I am sad to see his season start out this way.  I hope he recovers for the American hard court interlude before the clay court season start.  I love seeing him win the French - it never gets old, so I am hoping that things will work themselves out. I am glad he was honoured with the Laureus Sportsman of the Year award this year because he deserves it.  He works so hard and fights to the bitter end.  Very inspiring. Looking at his lovely bod as he models for Armani Jeans is a great substitute for the lack of gratification from sport at the moment though he he he...