Lyle aiming to emulate his well-known cousin

Growing up kicking a ball in the streets of Noordgesig in Johannesburg, Orlando Pirates Under-17 striker Lyle Foster (above) always had a dream that he and his cousin Luther Singh would play alongside each other in one of the top leagues in Europe one day.

Now seeing that his cousin is already living that dream, the 17-year-old Buccaneers striker said he is working very hard every single day to ensure that he joins him.

The pair are related through their parents, who are siblings, and Foster, who captains the Pirates Under-17 team, says he draws inspiration from Singh, who currently turns out for Braga FC’s reserve team in Portugal, having played for Swedish second division side Gais during the 2015/2016 season.

Singh was also a star of the South African Under-20 side that has qualified for the Fifa Under-20 World Cup in South Korea later this year, and made his senior international debut for Bafana Bafana against An- gola in a friendly last month.

“I don’t like to talk too much about him, but obviously him being part of my family and being where he is now is a big thing. We are the only two members of our family who play football. I have looked up to him since the days we were in school, he used to pick me up and I have always seen him as my big brother. He is my role model,” said the young Buccaneers striker.

“We live for football, it has always been our dream to play together. He has achieved a lot at an early age and I believe he will continue growing. I just want to see myself doing as good as he is doing because he is my inspiration and we will probably play in the same team one day.

“Pirates are a big club and there is always pressure to do well. But I think I have managed to handle it well because the badge of the team itself comes with the pressure.

“In every game we play we take it seriously, it doesn’t matter if is a friendly match or not, we always have to ensure that we give a good performance,” he said.