CAPTAIN COURAGEOUS
HOW KEKANA LED FROM THE FRONT
As a young boy,boy Hlompho Kenana welcomed Orlando Pirates home at Jan Smuts Airport in 1995 after “EzikaMagebhula” won the CAF Champions League following their victory away at ASEC Mimosas in Abidjan. Twentyone years later, he lifted the CAF Champions League trophy himself after MamelodiM Sundowns’ 3-1 aggregate win over Egyptian side Zamalek. His is the story of a talentedta player that never gave up on his dreams and a hard-working footballer that put it allal on the line as captain of his club. In this face-to-face interview, Kekana speaks to KICK OFFOF about this journey and how life has changed for him and Masandawana. KICKKIC OFF: What is it like to captain oneon of the best teams in Africa?
HLOMPHOHL KENANA: It’s very special to b be a captain of this big institution, but you know it’s never an easy task. I nev never saw it coming, as I always regard my myself as a very quiet player, so when the they came with this responsibility that I sh should lead the team, it wasn’t one of the easiest decisions to make. I had to con consult with the senior players; I had to c consult with the people that I really loo look up to in the game. I remember I we went to Surprise [Moriri] and Esrom [Ny [Nyandoro] to gauge their thoughts abo about me being captain, and they we were happy for me. Now that I’m used to t the responsibility and the pressure, I fe feel very proud to be the captain of Ma Mamelodi Sundowns.
HowHo was the switch from Alje Schut to you now being captain, especially for your teammates?
It was one of the most difficult decisions that I’ve made in my life, to come out of my shell and to come and lead a team of this nature. I’m dealing with a lot of internationals, but we all understand each other ... it’s not a very difficult thing to do because everyone knows their roles and responsibilities in the team.
You are now 32 years old. How do you keep yourself in shape at this age?
Well, I love the game. The only thing I knew when I was young was to play the game. I’ve invested so much into this game and I guess it comes with responsibilities. I think in as much as it’s difficult to remain in shape, it’s always nice to play as many games as you can, especially around this group of players who are always motivating me to go the extra mile.
How long is your new contract with Mamelodi Sundowns?
I’ve signed for another three years, which is going to keep me here until 2020. It’s a nice feeling to be secure and I feel like a new player again.
Not defending the Absa Premiership title, how was that?
When we set our targets, one of our goals was to dominate and win the league here at home. Not achieving that was disappointing, but looking at the things we have achieved, I think it would have been greedy of us to win the league because we’ve won
the biggest trophy in Africa. And to be honest, we should still be celebrating if we were another team, but look at us: we tried to fight for the league even if it wasn’t meant for us.
You guys will be playing in the CAF Champions League for the third time in a row after finishing second in the 2016/17 season …
It’s a special moment. It’s a huge thing to play in this kind of tournament because it teaches us a lot in the game and we learn a lot from different teams and different kinds of opposition. We are playing with teams we used to hear about when we were young. I remember we used to hear about Esperance playing Kaizer Chiefs in the Vodacom Challenge [in 1999], and now we had the opportunity to play against them. It’s something that we are excited to take part in. We are now in the tournament for the third time as you say, but it’s something that we really want to make a culture here at Sundowns; to try and play in that space consistently like the Zamaleks, the Al Ahlys. It helps us grow as players and you can see even when we play here at home, we use some of the experience we get from the tournament.
Can you defend the Champions League?
Like I said, we want to copy the good things that other teams have done in this tournament – like Al Ahly. They won this tournament so many times. We want to be remembered as the generation that brought that love of the game into our country. I remember in 1995, when as South Africans we used to rally behind the national team and the Orlando Pirates team that won the Champions League. It was one of the best moments, a proud moment, even though when we were young we were not supporting Orlando Pirates. But by knowing that Pirates is from South Africa, we had so much joy as young kids. I can say that, personally, there were players in that Pirates team that really inspired me to be the person and the player I am today.
Did you frame those boots with which you scored that wonderful goal for Bafana Bafana against Cameroon in that Nations Cup qualifier that was nominated by Fifa for the Puskás Award?
[Laughs] Eish my brother, I still have those boots. If you want me to talk about that goal, well ... when I look at it today, it’s something that I can be really be proud of and at the same time be sad about because we didn’t win the match on the day. But it was the best goal I’ve ever scored in my whole career. Only God knows what came into my mind to try and score from that far. But when we play we sometimes become crazy and I think my craziness helped me to
“WATCHING IT STILL GIVES ME GOOSEBUMPS BECAUSE IT DOESN’T LOOK REAL – IT LOOKS LIKE SOMEBODY ELSE SCORED THAT GOAL.”
score from that far. Wherever I go, they still talk about it. Watching it still gives me goosebumps because it doesn’t look real – it looks like somebody else scored that goal.
Do you practice such crazy goals at training?
Yes! I remember at training the week before we went to the national team ... on the day we were playing “10 vs 8” and I was unfortunately in a team that had eight players. There was a time that I got the ball from probably the same distance and Denis [Onyango] was out of the box and I tried to score, but the ball went over the bar. I was disappointed because I thought it was going to be an easy goal because he was not in the box. I was angry. I then took like seven balls with Khama [Billiat] and I tried to score from there and none of those balls went in. I went home sad. The following week we played in Limbe [Cameroon] and I took the shot from distance. I don’t know how, but it went straight into the net. I was so happy.
You’ve won two league titles with SuperSport United and two with Mamelodi Sundowns, and are two league titles behind Daine Klate who has won six …
I’m very proud ... I’m proud of my achievements so far and I think I should be proud to be the player from Zebediela – the village that I’m from – to win such medals. And as a player, I always want more and I think I’m in the right team to do that.
Let’s talk Bafana Bafana. There’s a new coach and new beginnings, what are the chances of qualifying for the World Cup next year and the 2019 Afcon in Cameroon?
As South Africans we are blessed with talent. We’ve got this group of players that just need to be managed well, and I don’t see us having a huge problem in competing in that space. The only thing I think can let us down is [lack of] consistency – such as in the two World Cup qualifiers that we’ve played. Having a new coach is going bring new ideas and players are going learn a lot. And I have a strong belief that the new coach can carry the team to greater levels.
And lastly, how would you sum-up your 2016/17 season?
Personally, I would say it was my best season because of the trophy that I lifted with the guys – a very, very difficult trophy to win. It took South Africans many years to lift the CAF Champions League trophy. I remember when I was still at school, I went to Jan Smuts Airport [OR Tambo International Airport] to welcome home Pirates, the champions back then. I never knew that one day it would be me lifting the trophy. Look at me today, I’m speaking as a captain that lifted the same trophy some 20odd years later.