A life in football
ON MAY 20, 1998, I made my international debut, against Zambia. We were losing 1-0 and I was subbed on with still 20-minutes to go. I played on the left side of midfield. I was “buzzing”, taking on and beating the opposition players with ease, using my speed and skill to create the equaliser. When I got the ball in midfield, I dribbled past two opposition players down the left flank and crossed a cut back which one of our midfielders, Shoes Mashoe, hit from outside the box into the back of the net. We went on to draw and it was a memorable debut for me having shone in that 20 minutes I had on the field.
As the young gun in the team, I appreciated the encouragement from the senior players: Mark Fish, Shoes Mashoe, Radebe, Phil Masinga, Arendse, Doc Kumalo, Benni McCarthy and Shaun Bartlett.
The coach told me that I should use my debut as a learning experience to build from. After that debut, I went on holiday to Durban and stayed at my grandparents’ place. It was uplifting to hear the favourable comments and seeing the community being happy for my success.
After all, I was one of them and I would never forget where it had all started for me.
For them I was not just representing my country but also my suburb, Sydenham.
It was an unbelievable moment for me being selected for that 1998 World Cup. From only recently making my debut, I was now going to be playing on the biggest stage in international football. I was over the moon as it was yet another dream come true for me. You just didn’t get any bigger than that.
The team programme was for us to train together for another two more days and then to fly to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in June. Here we had a one-week training camp. Part of our preparation was to also play a friendly game against Argentina.
Usually my favourite position I played in was on the left side, but for this game I came on as a central midfielder. I ended up marking one of Argentina’s key playmakers, Diego Simeone, who is currently Athletico Madrid’s head coach. He was also playing in centre midfield. I made his job difficult and caused him a few problems, due to my pace.
I was not nervous like my earlier debut and having been with the squad for three weeks helped me as I felt more a part of the team.
We played well against a quality international team. Quinton Fortune had a chance within five minutes of my introduction and could have equalised, but Argentina replied immediately to our best attempt at goal and went 2-0 up.
At the end of the game, when I asked Diego Simeone to exchange shirts, he just waved me away. That disappointed me as he was a player that I had admired. After that incident I lost some respect for him. That Argentinian team also had super stars like Crespo and Batistuta.
For me, a stand-out guy at the 98 World Cup, was our captain Lucas Radebe. He was pleasant, humble, supportive and very encouraging – setting a good example for us all to follow.
After a friendly game against a German club team, he said to me on the bus that I could come to him if I had any problems or needed to talk about anything. He finished off by saying: “As a captain I am here for you.”
This made me feel good knowing that the captain was there to help and it was something I didn’t take for granted – especially as later on former players used to give me a hard time whenever they commentated on TV which I felt was unwarranted. The best way I answer my critics is not with words but what I did on the pitch.
Even at the twilight of my career this criticism from former players would not stop. On my return to live in South Africa in 2012, when I signed for Maritzburg United, it flared up again.
This time it was from Mark Williams, a former Bafana striker who said: “He is old and won’t last a season. Delron would be lucky if he makes half a season.”
Sorry to disappoint you Mark because I received four man-of-the-match awards in my first season for Maritzburg United, and a recall into the Bafana team. AN EXCERPT FROM THE CONCLUDING CHAPTER
Now retired from playing, an area that South Africa can drastically improve on is in mental coaching. When I played overseas, each team had their own mental coach who assisted players to get into the right frame of mind. Mental factors like confidence, focus, composure, and motivation are extremely significant to an athlete’s performance and much needed to help them perform and prepare for competition and to break through any mental barriers that may be keeping them from performing to their optimum potential.
Let’s face it, at the elite level where teams are fit and physically strong, there is not much of a difference. I believe the biggest difference lies in between a player’s two ears. By this of course I mean their mental strength, which is their ability to move on after losses, poor performance and maintain confidence and composure in the face of adversity.
Mental coaching helps players to focus on performing each task effectively.
I am fortunate because Myan Subrayan is not just my writer, but also my life coach and is a big help to me professionally and personally. He successfully worked with the Lions rugby team from Johannesburg, when they were relegated from Super Rugby in 2012, to get back promotion for 2014. I also took Myan to assist at Maritzburg United and Amazulu. If we want to be amongst the best in the world then mental coaching should be introduced – even at the junior levels as a form of lifeskills.