Ntshumayelo: It was a mess

Beaver Nazo: Look who’s back!

Thandani Ntshumayelo: It’s really good to be back playing football again after a lengthy period. Ngiyabonga ukuthi nicabange ngami (thank you for thinking of me).

BN: So, where are you in terms of fitness?

TN: I am getting there. I always do well at training and it’s getting better every day. I’ve done well in some of the friendlies we’ve played. I will get a chance to play a PSL game soon and I know I can manage. What delayed my return is that I had to first deal with the mental aspect and my weight because I gained a lot of weight while I was serving the ban. I didn’t stop, although it was not easy to come back because there were days after training where every part of my body was sore, and I would even think of quitting. I am proud of myself, even though I was thinking that maybe I wouldn’t make it, especially when I was training with Bidvest Wits.

BN: What happened with your trial there?

TN: I am grateful to everyone at Wits for the effort they made to get me back into the game. Every player there saw that I was so big, so fat. They were helping me with everything, including transport, and they also brought some diet and nutrition plan for me. They even organised a dietician for me from their own pocket. I want to thank every one of them, from the kitchen ladies to the playing personnel. Even the kit manager, Jack Ndlovu, used to stay behind with me and make me run, and I ended up losing weight. They were very good and supportive to me and I wish the club everything of the best. I didn’t leave because they didn’t want me, but I got a call from Khurishi Mphahlele (Baroka FC chairman), asking me if I would mind coming here for an assessment. BN: What transpired next? TN: Wits are fighting for the league and have really good, quality players there. Even though I competed with them at training, I wasn’t going to expect to come back from two years of

Guesswork later turned into complete shock, for it was first revealed that an Orlando Pirates player had failed a drug test, before Thandani Ntshumayelo was confirmed to be that man, and was later handed a four-year ban from football. It was only natural that a lot of questions would follow. What drove him to do it? Was the drug test for a player who was completely out of the picture at Bucs at the time a case of sabotage? As the pain lingered behind the scenes for Bibo, as the midfielder is fondly called, life went on for everybody else. His sentence was later reduced by two years, and voila, he turned up for assessment at Bidvest Wits. Cries of empathy for a footballer who continued to show remorse for his indiscretions could be heard from far and wide, but with no word coming from Gavin Hunt and Co, Ntshumayelo left for Baroka FC, where he was recently handed a contract. It’s a story of disappointment, adversity, resilience and coming face-to-face with one’s demons. Soccer Laduma’s Beaver Nazo couldn’t miss this interview opportunity with the 29-year-old…

no football and into their star-studded team. It was going to be unfair of me to expect that. I sat down with coach Gavin (Hunt) and told him that I got this call from Mr Mphahlele and I would like to go and try out there. He didn’t disapprove. I then came here and the chairman was very happy to see me here. He told me that he respects me and is aware of my achievements and the player that I became over the years. It was very good to see that there are people out there who acknowledge the good things that I’ve done in my career.

BN: Bibo, you come from a very difficult situation.

TN: I do everything that I can to help the team that I play for and that is what is on my mind now. I have put all that behind me. For example, before the game against Kaizer Chiefs, I spoke to this young boy, Goodman Mosele, and I told him what to do. He listened to the advice I gave him and he was instrumental in that game, so, yeah, I try. Mosele is a very good boy and he will go far in football if he stays humble and away from bad habits. It’s true, I come from a very difficult situation, but the most important thing is that I am back now. I made a mistake and I paid dearly for it.

BN: How did you find yourself in a situation where you were banned from football for using a banned substance?

TN: I have done a lot of interviews on radio and television when it happened, and I am trying by all means to put it behind me, so you’ll have to go back to the interviews I did to get the full story. I wouldn’t want anyone to go through what I went through. Some of the things we do don’t look wrong when you do them, until you see the results. I have learnt the hard way. People, not only footballers, should not get involved or use banned substances like cocaine because it doesn’t only affect you as the person using it, but your family and loved ones too. You end up losing assets and you might even lose your partner, your family and your properties. Your kids are also going to suffer. People like us (footballers) don’t realise how many people we hurt when we do these things. There are people and young players who look up to us and they get affected, you know. That situation made me realise ukuthi (that) when you do anything, it doesn’t only affect you.

BN: What was your life like during that time?

TN: I don’t want to lie, it was a mess. But I tried to remain strong, even though it was difficult. The support that I got was enough to make me not lose hope. In my career, I have met a lot of people who, when things were bad, showed me that they care about me. I’m talking about players that I grew up with and played with as well as players I played against. They showed real love to me and played a big role. My parents and the whole Ntshumayelo family… I don’t know what I would have been without them… my girlfriend as well. They all showed up when I thought I was in the dark and all alone. You know, sometimes these things happen to make you wise and show you who really cares about you and who doesn’t. It happened and I saw all