Henk ten Cate dedicates Arabian Gulf League title to Al Jazira ‘family’ and kit-men in particular

Al Jazira can end the season with a winning record of 22 league matches if they beat Al Dhafra on Friday. He was quite to credit the team's success though to two men behind the scenes.

​Kallur Mohammed Baba has been Al Jazira's kit-man for the past 38 years. Courtesy Al Jazira Football Club

ABU DHABI // If one thing is abundantly clear about Henk ten Cate’s attitude to life, it is that he is big on family.

Al Jazira’s manager spent the best part of a news conference on Thursday talking up the idea of family and how that helped his side win the Arabian Gulf League title with three weeks to spare.

Jazira can end the season with a winning record of 22 league matches if they beat Al Dhafra on Friday, and after reminding everyone – not least his own players – about the importance of the fixture, he tipped his hat to the club’s staff, players and supporters.

Chief among them was kit-man Kallur Mohammed Baba, who has had the job for 38 of the 43 years since Al Jazira were established. Jaleel Yousuf was the other, who is in his first year as understudy to Baba.

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“It begins from there,” the Dutchman said, referring to the Indian duo, who ensure that the kits of the players and the coaching staff are immaculately prepared and kept ready for training sessions as well as games.

“I call it the championship of Mohammed Baba. I call it [that] because we are a big family and every member played a part in the success. To reach 100 per cent, everybody in his own ability must reach 100 per cent.”

Ten Cate, who has had stints as assistant coach at Barcelona and Chelsea and managed Ajax, said it was important to realise and acknowledge the efforts of those who work tirelessly without expecting any credit.

“These people,” he said, once again pointing to Baba and Jaleel, “are part of the family but they are never mentioned. Normally, people who do this work, don’t expect any credit they deserve. But for me, he’s more important than everyone thinks.

“When we come for training, every day, our kits are kept for us nicely cleaned and washed up, folded along with our socks and shoes, and all we have to do is to get into them and walk out with a smile,” he added. “We can ask from them any number of shirts and socks and it will be given without any complaint.

“That’s why I want to dedicate this title to them.”

The Dutchman, who took charge of Jazira midway through last season when they were fighting to avoid relegation, revealed how they worked hard to avoid any negativity at the club.

“There were a lot of things that happened but we kept it within us as a family,” he said. “We didn’t communicate with anybody outside. We kept our problems within the family and solved it.”

To bring stability and camaraderie at the club, Ten Cate had to let a few players go.

“If you can see throughout the season, we have changed some players, but silently,” he said.

“We made our family stronger and stronger, and until we reached the moment I thought this is the real family. Now we can talk business.”

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