Swallows star’s father playing major role
MBABANE – “We have a special programme with Thabang.” This was said by Mbabane Swallows PnP under-15 player Thabang Dlamini after watching him play at the Prince of Wales yesterday. Thabang’s father David Dlamini said he supported his son through transporting him to soccer games. “We also talk a lot about soccer at home and every time he plays he notifies me, we then plan our day from the day before and I then come to watch him the following day,” Dlamini senior said.
The father said after the match they went home to discuss the game and planned for the following week. “This programme started when he was seven years old, as I sent him to an academy and I continued to support him every time, as I kept tabs with his coach, who was teaching him the basics up until he joined Swallows,” he said.
He further said he told his son that education came first and football came second and they did school work for two hours before going to play. “If it happens that football and school clash we prefer education first,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dlamini junior said: “I started playing football when I was five years old, as this is the only sport I like. Since the PnP games started I have played all the games for my team. What I have noted is that some of the games were difficult, while others were like I was at training.”
The youngster said he trained once a week during school days, but when schools were closed he trained four times a week. He also said he was happy about their performance, as they had not drawn or lost a single game since the games commenced. He further said his wish was to play for Swallows locally and for Manchester United abroad.