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On Galaxy’s season so far
I’m proud of how far we’ve come because last season we made a pledge that we wanted to do better than the season before. Last season, we finished 10th or 11th and this season we made a commitment that we wanted to finish as high as the Top Eight. We will see where we end up, but our goal is to make sure that we improve individually and as a team. The players who’ve gone to better teams is a great motivation for the rest of the guys to work hard. There are lots of factors that we looked at and agreed on and so far, we are on the right path. What impresses me the most is our workmanship. Our hard work has impressed me because we’ve kept it consistent so far, and us reaching the Carling Knockout final is extra motivation for the team, to say we can make it no matter what. It was a great achievement for TS Galaxy, and that was our first cup final since getting promoted to the PSL (topflight). The Nedbank Cup that the club won was during the National First Division days, but now this is the first one in the PSL and it could have been even more beautiful had we won the final. It’s just a clear indication that we are on the right path and right direction in terms of where we want to see the club.
On Bafana winning bron ze at Afc on
Overall, the guys’ performance was good and you could see that they have an understanding in terms ofhow the coach (Hugo Broos) wants them to play. They performed well and what impressed me the most was their offthe-ball performance. They died for one another in terms offighting. They kept a compact defence and solid tactical approach. They impressed me a lot in the way they performed. What we could have done better is realising our strength, which is speed. We could have done more in terms of speed because most countries didn’t have faster centre-backs. We could have capitalised more on that in longer periods of matches by using our speed. What also impressed me is that you can see from outside that this team is solid. You can see that they have the brotherhood. You can see all the family values, and that really helped Bafana Bafana to get the best out of themselves. I’m sure the rest of the country is also impressed because we haven’t won a bronze (medal) in such a long time.
On his road to rec overy from injury
I’m feeling good as a person, I feel great mentally and I feel 80% almost complete of recovery. I’m in a good space mentally and physically and I’m enjoying my family time and studies. The last few months have been good. From the time I got injured in October, immediately when the surgeon told me that I will be able to play football again after I got discharged from the hospital, that was a mental boost for me. I started rehabilitation a few days later, just doing the normal blood flow and stretching exercises to keep fit and the heart going. The doctor said to me that I won’t need a cast and I will make a good recovery, and that was already a good boost for me. I started doing upper body and what needed to be done. Ever since, I’ve been enjoying the recovery. I’ve done a lot of upper body and a little bit ofswimming, and as time went by, me being on my feet after I stopped using crutches, I started doing my walks and strengthening exercises because I lost a lot of muscles and I wanted to regain my muscles back. I’ve been following protocol in terms of what needs to be done, and also big ups and credit to TS Galaxy, to the chairman (Tim Sukazi) and the coaching staff because they made sure that I received the best medical help available. From the day I got injured (against Mamelodi Sundowns), mentally I’ve always been in a good and positive space… and that started a long time ago when I started doing my Sport Psychology studies. I keep a positive attitude. Even the day I was stretchered off the field against Sundowns, I applauded the crowd as I was leaving the field – that attitude has always been there. Considering my age as well, I still perform well at the highest level and even better than people younger than my age. I’ve been producing Man ofthe Match performances and also helping the team by making sure that the youngsters improve as much as they can. The mental toughness has always been there, and that is why I also decided to write my book and start my foundation and do a lot more in terms of sharing my knowledge and experience to aspiring youngsters out there.
I started writing the book immediately after it was confirmed that I was the Kaizer Chiefs all-time top goalscorer. Myself and the author of the book, Charley Pietersen, we came into an agreement that becoming the all-time top goal scorer at Chiefs was great. And what I’ve also achieved at Bafana Bafana, being the third-highest top goalscorer and the remarkable illustrious career I’m having, that is something that needed to be documented to inspire the next upand-coming footballers. It took us a year and a couple of months to get the whole book done. Having a professional career is not easy and anyone who is at the latter stage of their respective careers will tell you that it hasn’t been an easy one. There is no footballer around the world that has had an easy career, but it’s beautiful to share those memories – the rollercoaster, the highs, the lows, the battlefields that needed to be fought on the field. It’s great to share those memories and tell those stories. It’s also good to reflect and say, “Oh wow, look at what I’ve overcome and achieved!” Those things will make you feel proud of yourself. When I wrote the book, what gave me the biggest satisfaction, the biggest achievement of my career is representing my country at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Nothing will ever match that because there have been a lot of players with legendary status, but they have never played at that level. The FIFA World Cup is the highest and it was the greatest satisfaction for me to share the field with the greatest players in the land. The most difficult thing, which made me emotional while writing this book, was to think about how far my football career has come. When I didn’t believe that I was going to become somebody, my mother saw it that I will go on to become someone in football. She bought me soccer boots instead ofschool shoes. She said to me, “I will buy you soccer boots so that you can play and go to school barefoot.” That was for a few couple of months until she had money to buy me school shoes. She had to make that decision. After buying me boots, I passed the trials at the School ofExcellence. My mother is someone who supported me right through my career and through all the struggles – it makes it even more beautiful. Seeing her struggle, leaving the house very early in the morning and coming back when it was dark from work… and she still managed to support us.
On where to in the near future
Right now, I’m in my third year of Sports Psychology and Life Coaching and I will make the decision about my future once I get there. For now, I just wanted to equip myself and I’ve done that early in my career when I did my Sports Management and Sports Marketing. I also did Personal Training, Sports Nutrition and Exercise Science, and now I’m doing Sports Psychology and Life Coaching. I have also decided to equip myself with coaching badges, CAF C Licence. I did all this to have a clear all-round understanding of what I’m doing. I need to maximise my knowledge in terms of how to get top performance and seeing the game from a different perspective. I need to get more knowledge about sports and the game of football. I will decide once I hang up in terms of what I want to venture into because I believe that I have an all-round understanding of sports.