Thulani Biya Ncube’s soft spot for Dynamos

PEOPLE walking along the dusty streets of Luveve in Bulawayo, in the late 1980s might have noticed a group of young boys eagerly kicking a home-made ball. None would have believed that one of the boys would later become a solid defender, respected by young and old alike, for sure.

The soccer career of Thulani Biya Ncube began in those Luveve streets where he played from dawn to dusk with a ball moulded out of paper and plastic bags.

That is where he earned the name Biya, a moniker which gained prominence due to his immaculate defensive services in those social soccer matches. As a child Biya lived for football.

By the time he moved to organised soccer at Inyanda Secondary School in Gwabalanda suburb, the street sessions with his friends had paid dividends — his foot work, playing with makeshift balls had developed into an incredibly great foot work.

At Inyanda High School he perfected his foot work and joined Zimbabwe Saints before joining Highlanders. This was the start of a glorious career with the Highlanders Under-23 national team and senior national team. He vividly recalls his debut for Bosso in 1998.

“My first appearance was against Blackpool in 1998. I remember I was marking Collins Kabote and it was not a good game for me. I was just 18 years old at the time,” he remembers.

He would, however, grow to become one of the best defenders in the country representing the Warriors at least 19 times.

“Playing for Zimbabwe meant a lot for me because I had the chance to play with good players like Peter Ndlovu and Norman Mapeza among the top players to come out of Zimbabwe,” said Ncube.

Biya says Mapenza and Zenzo “Zemura” Moyo were his pillar of strength. The pair rose to the occasion when the chips were down.

“At the national team I counted on Mapeza because we clicked well and he understood my type of play. At Highlanders with Zenzo we knew that when things were not going well he would get us a goal,” he says.

Though it is not easy to improve when you are so consistent, he improved. As a result he commanded a regular place in the first team line-up at Highlanders Under-23 national team and senior national team. In the field of play he exhibited leadership qualities and as such he was accorded with the captain’s arm band. He picks out Mandinda Ndlovu and Rahman Gumbo as the best coaches he played under.

“Although the two employed different types of coaching techniques I enjoyed playing under them,” said Biya.

He says his memorable match with Highlanders was: “The last game of the season when we won our first league title. We played against Ziscosteel at BF. I scored the first goal and we won the match 3-0,”

With his eight-year flirtation with Highlanders first team, Bosso won league championships in 1998-1999 season, 2000 and 2001. That red-hot Bosso won several cups too. It won the Cosmos Challenge Cup 1998, Independence Cup in 2001 and 2002, Dairiboard Shield Cup 2001. He picks the following players as his best 11. “We played a 3-5-2 formation. Goalkeeper Amon Chimbalanga, defenders Dazzy Kapenya, Thulani Ncube, Bekithemba Ndlovu, midfielders Melusi Ndebele, Gift Lunga Jr, Blessing Gumiso, Alexander Phiri, Sizabantu Khoza, strikers Zenzo Moyo and Thabani Masawi,” he says.

What most people never knew about Biya is that although Highlanders occupied a special spot in his heart he had a soft spot for Dynamos. But in such encounters he put up a top drawer performance each time he played against the team he secretly adored.

“When I was young, blue was my favourite colour, so it was only natural that I would support Dynamos because I had good friends like Desmond Maringwa there. But when you lost such a game to Dynamos you would hear about it the whole week when we went to the Warriors camp. The game against Dynamos was a must win, though it was not always easy,”he says.

In 2004 he turned down a national team call-up.

“In 2004 I had to turn down a national team call-up. I had to openly tell Sunday Chidzambwa that I was intending to venture into business in the USA and he understood that,” he says.

After a fruitful five years with Highlanders he was signed by South African Ajax Cape Town FC and his career at Cape Town was short-lived after he sustained a knee injury. He then moved to USA side Cape Cod Crusaders, then coached by Methembe Ndlovu, where he eventually retired due to a recurring knee injury. The former Highlanders Football Club skipper and Warriors kingpin joined hands with friends in 2015 and established an academy. It is called Biya and Friends Academy, situated in Luveve.

“I, former football players and individuals formed the academy in 2015. Its main purpose is to identify potential talent at a tender age and develop it,” he says.

The academy caters for Under-12, 14, 16 and 18. The Under -14, 16 and 18 currently play in the Zifa Bulawayo Province Junior League known as Serie A. The academy was promoted to Serie A in 2017 after playing in Serie B for two seasons since its formation. It mainly targets players from Luveve, Gwabalanda and Cowdray Park. He has advice for the budding players. “With soccer one could reach prestigious places. But that entails hard work. More importantly one has to prioritise education because soccer is a short term career,” he noted.

Another issue close to his heart that he shared is the current reputation of Highlanders — the team that he represented with iconic distinction but has become a pale shadow of its former self.

“It’s very sad to see a big club like Highlanders struggling as they are doing. Personally I think Bosso should go back to junior policy. When I started playing for the first team, most of the players I played with had graduated from the Under-18 and it worked in our favour,”he said.

He is currently based in the USA where he is involved in grooming raw soccer talent. Born on 21 September 1977 in Pelandaba, Bulawayo, Ncube has three children namely Ashley, Banele and Mario. He is grateful football gave him a livelihood and opened opportunities he may have never dreamt of.

He says: “If it was not for football I might not had the opportunity to meet my favourite coach Jose Mourinho while attending a coaching course at Stamford Bridge in England and achieved what I have achieved.”