The newly elected president of the South African Football Association (SAFA), Mr Kirsten Nematandani, has been assured of unwavering support from the Limpopo provincial government.

This was stated by the acting premier of the province, Mr George Phadagi, during a gala dinner that was held at Khoroni Hotel on Sunday evening.

Phadagi, the MEC for Public Works, said that Limpopo was proud to be the home of SAFA’s president. Phadagi described Mr Nematandani as a well-trained and knowledgeable leader. The former president of Netball South Africa, Ms Muditambi Ravele, encouraged Mr Nematandani to prove all the critics wrong by working hard to ensure that this country hosted the best World Cup tournament ever next year. She appealed to Nematandani to remain focused despite all the criticism.

When welcoming Mr Nematandani to the world of national presidents, the president of Softball South Africa, Mr Guillo Marapyane, stated that Mr Nematandani should associate himself with the right people if he wanted to succeed in his leadership.

The manager of sports and recreation in the Thulamela Municipality, Mr Ronald Makhadi, revealed that when he recruited Mr Nematandani to become an executive member of the then Venda Football Association (VEFA) about 20 years ago, little did he know that he was recruiting the future president of the South African Football Association. He indicated that Nematandani has played a major role in the negotiations that led to the restructuring of local football. When responding to the words of encouragement from all the speakers, Mr Nematandani indicated that he was prepared to face all the challenges that go with his new job.