Botswana, from "whipping boys" to "African team of year"

 　　GABORONE, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Not many years ago, Botswana was an unknown entity 1 in the world of soccer.

　　Perhaps the only thing the landlocked Southern Africa nation was known for was its peace, and the pretty little stones - diamonds, not the popular game of soccer, let alone sport.
　　The national soccer team, the Zebras have never qualified 2 for any major event, either within Africa or internationally before 2008. The only competition they were often sure of qualification was the regional Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) challenge, which they never even reached the finals in its years of existence.
　　The only time they came close was when they reached the semi-finals as hosts in 2006, then under the tutelage of British born coach Colwyn Rowe.
　　It was not surprising that at the time the team was tagged as "the whipping boys of African soccer." Winning was something foreign and very rare for the team at the time. In fact a loss result was the most popular with the team. The only time the team managed a win was when playing against fellow regional minnows, Lesotho and Swaziland, and once in a while Namibia.
　　The team has been trying their luck to qualify for both the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and FIFA world cup since 1994. It took them exactly 11 years to win their first match in the world cup qualifiers preliminary stages, a 4-1 victory over Lesotho in 2005 for the event that was hosted by Germany.
　　They went on to play in the group stages but finished last. For the AFCON it was the same story as they have failed dismally 3 to qualify, often registering heavy losses against north and west African opponents, despite sometimes holding them for draws at home.
　　Throughout this period, the team has changed managers to try and turn their fortunes around. Local as well as foreign coaches have been in charge of the team but none succeeded in bringing the long-awaited glory to the team. Among the notable foreign coaches who have been in charge of the national team are Germans Rudi Gutendorf and Karl-Heinz Marotzke as well as Serbian Veselin Jelusic (2002-2006) and Rowe (2006-2008). Among the coaches, Veselin and Rowe are credited for having played a major part in the team's revolution. [ The Serbian brought to the team a defensive 4 approach that the team still prides itself over today. Though he did not achieve any notable success with the team, Veselin brought some level of respect as he managed to match some African powerhouses in terms of play.
　　One notable game was in the qualifiers for the 2004 AFCON when they played former champions Tunisia in Gaborone. The Zebras put up a sterling 5 performance scoring first through Mogogi Gabonamong. Though they went on to lose the match 3-2, future opponents started taking the team seriously, not expecting a walk in the park.
　　Veselin quit at the end of the qualifiers for the 2006 AFCON and was redeployed by the Botswana Foobball Association (BFA) to coordinate 6 youth development in the country. In came a relatively 7 unknown Briton Colwyn Rowe, who prior to his appointment as Zebras head coach was involved with youth soccer in Jordan.
　　Rowe brought in some new faces into the team, something his predecessors 8 were criticised for failing to do, eg: Veselin used an almost similar team throughout his four year tenure 9 as head coach, and pundits 10 pointed 11 out that he quit because his team has reached he ceiling and he was afraid of bringing change to the team.
　　A bulk of players brought to the team by Rowe were youngsters from the under-23 side that achieved a lot of success the previous year playing in the 2008 Olympic qualifiers and winning two tournaments, one in South Africa and the other in China. These players currently form the core of the team that made history qualifying for AFCON for the first time.
　　Under Rowe the team started playing some enterprising football, centered around passing the ball around. Botswana was drawn 12 in a tough group for the 2008 AFCON qualifiers that included defending champions Egypt. Rowe's young squad 13 however put an outstanding performance in front of the home crowd in Gaborone holding the Egyptians to a goalless draw.
　　The team was on the verge 14 of qualifying in their final group match in Cairo, but fate were against them as they narrowly lost 1-0 to miss out on qualifying for the continental 15 showpiece for the first time. Under Rowe, Zebras achieved their highest FIFA ranking at the time, 95th. Despite having achieved some little success, Rowe was very unpopular with the local media, a thing many believe lead to his ultimate sacking in 2008.
　　Rowe was replaced by a local, Stanley Tshosane, a retired 16 army colonel. Tshosane has had previous stints 17 with the national team before, all of them unsuccessful. He once served as an assistant coach under both Veselin and Rowe.
　　Tshosane did not make any instant significant changes to the team he inherited from Rowe. His first match was a joint 18 2010 AFCON and world cup group qualifier against a star -studded Cote d'Ivorie at home.
　　Though being heavily criticised for his tactics by the locals, Tshosane pulled a shock result holding the Ivorians to a 1-1 draw. The team showed some sparks of brilliance 19 though they went on to be thumped 20 4-0 by the Ivorians on the return leg. With the focus on the 2010 world cup that was in full swing in South Africa, Tshosane and the Zebras began what will go down in history books as the first success achieved by Botswana, qualifying for AFCON.
　　The team quietly departed to Tunisia where they would face the horn of Africa nation in a first leg match of Group K in the qualifiers for the 2012 AFCON. The team did what was not very common, beating Tunisia 1-0 away. They went on to win the return leg in Gaborone before claiming back to back victories over Chad and two more wins against Malawi and Togo to become the first country to qualify for the event.
　　By December 2010, the team reached their highest ever FIFA ranking, 53rd. Everyone started taking note of the minnows from southern Africa. They started drawing interest from tougher opposition 21, playing a friendly match against Sweden at the beginning of 2011, which they narrowly lost 1-0. This was in the middle of their fairytale journey to qualify for AFCON.
　　Recently they held African soccer powerhouse Nigeria to a 0-0 draw in their own backyard. The team was nominated for Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) awards, for team of the year, alongside Cote d'Ivorie.
　　In addition, coach Tshosane and striker Ramatlhakwana also received nominees 22 for best coach and best player respectively. Though they did not win the individual awards, Botswana went on to be crowned African team of the year at the awards ceremony held in Accra, Ghana last week Thursday. The award came as a true Christmas present for many soccer lovers in the country. The nation rejoiced, marking the end of a very prosperous year for them in soccer.
　　"It was indeed a remarkable 23 year for us. Though we have not yet won any major trophy 24, we achieved a lot by qualifying for AFCON and winning a CAF award," BFA President David Fani said.
　　For his part, head coach Tshosane said he was very excited as the team managed to reach a historic feat 25 under his guidance. He however noted 26 that there is still a long way to go before actual success could be reached.
　　"We will continue working hard so that we can be counted among the best, I am very grateful for the team," he said.