10 August 2018 – PSL and NFD up and coming match official, Jelly Chavani, jetted off to Egypt on Friday, 10 August for the upcoming none-international referee course which will take place from 11 to 16 August 2018.
The five-day seminar, which will take place in Egypt’s capital, Cairo, is set to equip young match officials who have the potential of becoming international referees in the coming year or two, with the required skillsets which will see them evolving into more astute match officials of the game.
The 22-year old Chavani said he felt honoured to have been chosen by the South African Football Association (SAFA) to go feature in this course, adding that this is another step into the right direction towards what he really wants to achieve in the coming years.
“I want to see myself having officiated in two FIFA World Cups before I retire,” Chavani said. “That’s my dream. I’m only 22 years old now and I just need to continue working really hard. I believe it can be done. This opportunity serves as another step towards that direction. I’m going there to apply myself and learn as much as I can. I want to see myself with a FIFA badge before I turn 25. That’s my aim. This opportunity serves as a building block towards that.”
At age 20, Chavani was already serving as a fourth official in the NFD. He only got to officiate a few matches then because he was brought in going into the second round of the 2015/16 campaign. In the 2016/17 season, the lad form Chavani Village which is 35.4Kms away from Louis Trichardt in the Limpopo province, excelled and was later given the nod to officiate in PSL matches as well. Chavani adds that it was a dream come true when he was given the commanding role to officiate in the PSL’s five league games, however, also admits that experience had him craving for more going into this new season.
“My target is to officiate in at least 13 league matches in top flight football this season,” Chavani said. “That would be a dream come true for me. There’s a lot that I still need to learn though. Guys like Victor Gomes, Victor Hlongwane and Zakhele Siwela are more experience than I, and I will always go to them for advise in order to help grow my game. They’ve been in the game long enough than I have. They all inspire me.”