HE is one of the few captains who led Likuena for years after he held on the skipper’s armband from 1997 until 2004. During his term at the helm of the squad, Likuena reached the Confederation of African Football Associations (COSAFA) Cup Finals in 2000 and almost qualified for the 2002 AFCON qualifiers competition.
sports
Feb. 26, 2021
TEBOHO JAFETA
6 min read
Veteran footballer, scholar, Tšepo Hlojeng
Tšepo Hlojeng (right) with Liphakoe head coach Teele Ntšonyana
Tšepo Hlojeng has become a coach since he retired from competitive football in 2010 and he is the assistant coach of the Quthing-based side Liphakoe FC.
He holds a Confederation of African Football (CAF) B Licence Coaching Certificate which enables him to coach both in the Premier League and A Division.
In 2008, he obtained an Executive Masters’ Degree in Sports Organisation Management from the University of Lyon in France through a Lesotho National Olympic Committee (LNOC) scholarship before obtaining a Post Graduate Diploma in Project Management with the MANCOSA University in South Africa in 2013. He also graduated with a Master’s Degree in Development Studies with the University of Free State (UOFS) in 2019.
From being the best losers at the 1999 COSAFA Cup, Likuena emerged the best performers when they scooped a glorious victory over the defending champions Angola in the semi-finals.
Likuena crashed the Angolans in a spectacular clean walk-over of two goals to one at Setsoto Stadium to progress to the finals where they went down 3-0 to Zimbabwe.
Hlojeng was recalled to the national side alongside giant striker Teele Ntšonyana, and the nippy forward Kabelo Mosothoane to bring the much needed experience into Likuena camp prior to the COSAFA Castle Cup first round tie against the Zebras of Botswana on February 29, 2004 in Maseru.
The match ended in a goalless draw and Zebras went on to win encounter by 11-10 on penalties.
Owing to his experience and impeccable football skills, Hlojeng was part of the players who were recalled by the then head coach Mafa Ribbo Ramakau in 2004 to add value and quality to the national team.
This was after Lesotho dismantled the squad that reached the finals of the 2000 COSAFA Castle Cup in order to build a new young side.
But Ramakau was forced to go back to veteran players who provided the bulk of the side who were finalists in the southern African championship in 2000.
A fitness fanatic, Hlojeng also competed in athletics and he finished 46th at the 2018 Maseru Ultra Marathon 21 kilometres race, clocking 2:32:16.
Born on November 1, 1975, Tšepo Hlojeng is the son of ’Mateboho and the late Manama Hlojeng. He was born and bred in St Monicas, Leribe.
He obtained his Standard 7 Certificate from St Monicas Primary School in 1988, before he went to Sacred Heart High School where he obtained his Junior Certificate (JC) in 1991 and Cambridge Overseas School Certificate (COSC) in 1993.
He then enrolled at the National University of Lesotho (NUL) where he graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing in 1998.
His football talent was uncovered at Sacred Heart where he played for the school’s first team. The squad excelled in Leribe and represented the district at the 1993 Coca Cola Cup.
During his high school days, he also played for Mphatlalatsane FC who were in the B Division.
Upon his arrival at NUL, he joined the institute’s football club Rovers who were a powerhouse in the Premier League in those days.
The team later represented Lesotho at the 1997 CAF Champions League.
But Rovers went down 1-0 to Malawi’s Telkom Wonderers away in Malawi before later humiliating the Malawians by thrashing them 5-1 in Maseru.
They proceeded to the next stage of the competition where they met Orlando Pirates of South Africa. The Roma boys held the Buccaneers to a goalless draw at home before later losing 1-0 at the FNB stadium in South Africa.
In 2000, Hlojeng joined LCS FC and remained with the prisons side until 2003. He won the 2001 Top 4 Cup with the club before he returned to his home team Mphatlalatsane who were promoted to the Premier League in 2003.
He left Mphatlalatsane for FC Likhopo in 2007 and spent two years with the red army and the side won the league later that year before representing the country at the 2007 CAF Champions League but lost to Zambian FC Zanaco by 1-0 aggregate in the preliminary stage.
In 2009, he returned to Mphatlalatsane but remained with the team for only one season before he hung up his soccer boots.
After he graduated from NUL, he worked as a teacher at Masianokeng High School along with Masianokeng Commercial School until 1999.
His main responsibilities including teaching accounting and commerce at the high school level and office operations and commerce at the Masianokeng Commercial School.
He was also responsible for organising sporting activities at the Masianokeng High School.
Between 2000 and 2002, he worked part-timely at the Integrated Business College (IBC) where he taught principles of marketing and principles of management theory.
He worked for the Lesotho Correctional Service as a Public Relations and Project Officer between 2000 and 2003.
His main responsibilities included attending to public queries and complaints about the services as well as organising and arranging prisons educational campaigns.
He left LCS to join the Lesotho Council of Non-Governmental Organisations (LCN) as a Resource Mobilisation Officer from 2003 until 2006.
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His primary duties included but not limited to, researching and developing donors’ profile with focus on Lesotho for distribution to member NGOs, and developing project proposals for funding to developmental partners.
In 2006, he was engaged by the Lesotho National Olympic Committee (LNOC) as a Chief Executive Officer and served the local Olympics body until 2009.
He currently works as a Corporate Social Responsibility and Investment Administrator at the Letšeng Diamonds Mine and has been there since June 2009 where his overall responsibility is to manage the Corporate Social Responsibility and Investment programme of the mine through overseeing the identification of the community’s needs.
He also assists the communities to develop and monitor the implementation of sustainable community projects as well as developing quarterly reports to the Board on the project’s progress.
His coaching career began in 2010 at his home side Mphatlalatsane FC where he remained for three seasons before joining FC Likhopo in 2013 as head coach.
After one season, he left to be assistant coach to Bob Mafoso at Kick4Life FC. He spent one season with the Old Europa side and was not attached to any club until 2020 when he joined Liphakoe as assistant coach to Ntšonyane.
His best moment as a player was playing at the 2000 COSAFA Cup finals with Likuena. As a coach, his worst moment was failing to retain Mphatlalatsane’s status in the elite league due to financial problems.
Commenting about current players, the veteran footballer says they lack real passion for the game.
“During our playing times, we were passionate about football, hence we managed to achieve great things on voluntary basis,” he adds.
He is married to Moliehi ’Malephane now ’Madelinga Hlojeng and the couple has two children, a girl and a boy.
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