Shaun Bartlett: Cape Town legend who broke new ground in the English Premier League

You might be forgiven for considering that Shaun Bartlett was an expert golfer today given how a lot time the 49-year-old spends on the course. In case you have been to scroll via Bartlett’s Instagram feed you wouldn’t discover a scarcity of images of the legendary South African striker strolling a fairway or two on one of many picturesque golf programs within the Rainbow Nation.

Though with that stated, Bartlett continues to be very a lot a soccer man so don’t count on to see him enjoying on South Africa’s Sunshine Tour anytime quickly. No less than, for now, the most recent dwell golf odds gained’t present Bartlett’s title within the working to win an occasion as he challenges the nation’s extra outstanding golf stars like Louis Oosthuizen, who’s at the moment priced at 40/1, or Garrick Hugo, at 66/1 odds, on the Masters in April. Bartlett does, nonetheless, have one factor in frequent with these golfers and that’s the approach he flew the flag for South Africa on the largest sporting stage on the earth throughout his profession.

The 49-year-old is, in fact, a former African Cup of Nations winner with Bafana Bafana in 1996 and likewise went on to get pleasure from an extremely fruitful profession with Charlton Athletic within the English Premier League. Bartlett would find yourself spending six seasons on the Valley and, considerably, these have been the one seasons that the membership didn’t get relegated from the highest flight. It was actually a spell within the membership’s historical past that was their most profitable within the Premier League because the Charlton gamers purchased into the philosophy that supervisor Alan Curbishley promoted.

While these pleasant seasons underneath Curbishley could not have produced any silverware, Bartlett did earn a prestigious particular person accolade by profitable the purpose of the season award in 2001 after scoring a surprising left-footed volley in opposition to Leicester on the Valley. It was such a memorable strike that it was voted within the prime 4 targets in Charlton’s whole historical past.

All in all, Bartlett would make 137 appearances for Charlton and scored 26 targets over that point. It might seem to be a return of targets that don’t come out at you at first, however these stats don’t mirror the South African’s essential position within the last third for Charlton over the early 2000s. In some ways, it was a selfless job that Bartlett carried out as he dropped deep to maintain possession and convey others into play. Notably, the striker’s hold-up play was lauded as top-of-the-line within the league on the time.

So while Bartlett could not have been prolific in entrance of purpose, he was price his weight in gold as a crew man who spearheaded Charlton’s assault. It was certainly a profession that he was in a position to extract essentially the most out of. However what of this legendary ex-Charlton man in the present day, the place does the previous Premier League stalwart discover himself – aside from the golf course – 16 years after leaving the Valley?

The reality is: for the previous Charlton Athletic striker, golf is merely a method to escape the pressures {of professional} soccer administration and over this current South African summer time of 2021/2022, Bartlett has used his time on the fairways to recharge earlier than taking up his first full season in command of Cape City Spurs in late February.

Certainly, opposite to common perception and regardless of being an avid golfer, it’s soccer administration that Bartlett has essentially the most ardour for today and he hopes his teaching exploits in South Africa will finally take him again to the Premier League, the division the place he starred as a participant for the Addicks.

Time will inform if Bartlett is ready to get pleasure from a fairytale return to southeast London however even when he doesn’t, his legacy as a Charlton nice is safe.