Kali

Never tell tales on a footballer

"You don't grass on your mates." That's a lesson I learned through the stony glare of a fellow 13-year-old on a day at school I'd rather have forgotten.

Harsh early experiences teach us not to do it again. Unfortunately, one Angolan journalist has only just learned his lesson after an encounter with national team coach Manuel Jose.

For the uninitiated, "grassing" is telling on someone. Pointing the finger. Whistle-blowing. Snitching.

Not in a pointing-out-a-heroin-dealer-to-a-policeman sense. That's citizenship.

It's more when someone you know has been a bit roguish or accidentally put a football through a window. You don't tell the teacher or your dad or anyone else who's been asking questions. That's grassing.