Former legends deliver 12-goal thriller
Football
With retired international players on both sides, the match certainly entertained the crowd and viewers.
The Green Kick football exhibition match between Global United FC and the Coastal Legends was an occasion that lived up to expectations as a goal fest. The game between the two sides ended at 6-6.Global United, a collection of invited former professionals from different nationalities, started off as favourites, as they held a 2-1 lead at halftime thanks to goals by former South Africa national midfielder Stanton Fredericks and former Bayer Leverkusen and Eintracht Frankfurt player Thomas Reichenberger.
Global United FC’s former internationals such David Kannemeyer, Christian Alder, Oliver Unsöld, Andreas Görlitz, Ronald Maul, Kristian Baumgärtner, Bakary Diakité, George Dearnaley, Delron Buckley and Xaver Zembrod were a joy to watch, as they played very entertaining football.
Current Brave Gladiators head coach and former Brave Warriors midfielder Paulus Shipanga led the comeback for the Coastal Legends, as he bagged a hat-trick to equal the hat-tricks scored by Fredericks and Reichenberger.
Ex-NPL and national team players such as Rudolf Bester, George Hummel, Steven Damaseb and former Namibian captain Sandro de Gouveia showcased a lot of skill on the pitch, as the Coastal Legends settled for a draw.
Lolo Goraseb, who captained Global United FC, jokingly said: “This is a perfect result for both teams. I mean, six goals aside is a lot, but they scored three penalties – maybe a gift from the referee.”
Hat-trick hero Paulus Shipanga advised Green Kick to continue with the wonderful project that they have in Namibia as it is contributing to the Namibian child.
Global United FC’s chairman of the advisory board and former member of Germany’s European champion team of 1996, Fredi Bobic, was excited to be back in Namibia.
“It’s really nice to be back here again. We visited a few schools where we did some renovation work, gardening and handed a few goodies to the kids. Walvis Bay was great, we will be back again next year. Green Kick still has a lot to offer,” Bobic said.
The visit to the coast is orchestrated in partnership with Playtime Namibia, a nonprofit organisation headquartered in Walvis Bay committed to fostering sustainable youth and community development through sports activities, catering to children and young people across different age groups.
With no date set on when their next visit to Namibia will be, Bobic reassured everyone that the project remains long-term and they will be coming around again.