Johannesburg — A soon-to-be recipient of the Order of Ikhamanga in gold, not in her wildest dreams did Desiree Ellis think it would get this big.
Born in Salt River, Cape Town, 60 years ago, Ellis didn’t believe in short cuts from a tender age as she cut her football teeth by playing with boys and her cousins after school.
Such was her burning desire to be a fully-fledged footballer, she lost her 9-5 job in the process after she didn’t report back in time due to a car breakdown while on a trip with her club.
That football career continued to grow in leaps and bounds and Ellis made a breakthrough (in her 30s) for the national team, Banyana Banyana, as she captained the side in major tournaments.
However, it’s her stint as the national team coach that has earned her legendary status, having recently won Wafcon, qualified for back-to-back World Cups and claimed individual accolades.
Her coronation with the Order of Ikhamanga in gold by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday in Pretoria, though, could be an ultimate reward for the sacrifices she made to get where she is.
“In 2015, I was still the assistant coach, and we didn’t qualify for the World Cup with coach Vera Pauw. And there was a shirt that I had which said, ‘We Are Going to Canada’. But we didn’t,” Ellis recalled.
“I took that shirt with me in 2018. When we qualified, I could put the shirts next to each other and it sort of motivated me (to continue developing as a coach and the team).”
While Ellis will be honoured alongside Siya Kolisi, Duma Ndlovu, Mfundi Vundla and Freek Robinson, she’s only the first female and 11th football personality to receive the award.
Her rise to the top wasn’t smooth, having started as an administrator after hanging up her boots, before venturing into coaching due to the encouragement of two gentlemen.
“We want to play forever. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen. But I was urged by coach Serame (Letsoaka) and a gentleman called PJ Williams from the Bay (to get into coaching),” Ellis said.
“He (Williams) said people remember you from what you’ve done. Don’t let people remember you at the end when you can’t (do anything for them anymore).
“All I said to him when I started is: ‘we don’t have players and I am just trying to help the players’. Coach Serame once found me at a game of one of our national teams and he said: ‘when, when, when?’.”
Despite heeding that advice “not in my wildest imagination would I have thought that my life would have turned out this way” due to her humble beginnings.
Those humble beginnings also made Ellis develop a thick skin, knowing she can’t be everyone’s cup of tea, especially after being appointed as the Banyana coach in 2018.
“I didn’t take the job to prove anything to anyone. I always say to people: you’re your worth and your values. Make sure to educate yourself,” Ellis said.
“You are working with people that understand the game. I have got great support around me and great staff that work with me with expertise in their own fields. And we are all here to do the job.
“Everyone is here to make sure we take the team further. But never have I looked back and said I proved you wrong. It was never about that. It was about going there and doing well.”
While Ellis has done her best to get Banyana to be the benchmark of SA football, the Order of Ikhamanga will serve as an encouragement for them to do better.
Banyana head into their second successive World Cup finals in Australia and New Zealand in July.
Banyana are drawn in Group H alongside Sweden, Italy and Argentina who are ranked second, 16th and 28th in the world, respectively, compared to their 48th spot.
Following their first World Cup in 2019, Ellis and her charges know they have to maker it to the knockout stages this time around.
“We all know that we are in a tough group, but so is everyone else. We’ve seen what Morocco has done (after being the first African nation to reach the semi-finals in the 2022 men’s World Cup),” Ellis said.
“They were not one of the favourites to get out of the group. They went there with a plan and they stuck to it. We have a similar idea of what we want.”
IOL Sport