I was no longer enjoying football

“I felt that I had to send them a message to say thank you.”

That Sekhukhune United did not hesitate to hand Evans Rusike Evans a contract, even as had suffered a long-term injury and was fast approaching the wrong side of 30, proves that when a coach really wants you, he’ll move mountains to get you. However, the news was kept under wraps under the Zimbabwean international recovered, perhaps to avoid egg on the face that may come with signing one who’s

crocked. Surgery and recover both went well, however, and the ambitious club announced their not-so-new catch during the January transfer window. But why did Rusike fail to fire on all cylinders at SuperSport United after his capture from Maritzburg United, where he was a pain in unmentionable body parts for opposition defenders? Soccer Laduma’s Tshepang Mailwane caught up with the Harare-born star as he talks about his return to the pitch and looks back on his time with Matsatsantsa, where he was played out of position.

Tshepang Mailwane: How does it feel to be back playing football after half-a-year on the sidelines, following your exit from SuperSport United?

Evans Rusike: Yeah, it was six months. It’s a great feeling. I’ve been wanting to come back for some time. I was unfortunate that when I left SuperSport, I went to join the national team (for the COSAFA Cup) and then I got injured while I was there. I went for a surgery. I was out for six months because I had a tear on my Achilles. I had to be out for six months, and it was six hectic months. When you are used to being on the field, it’s difficult. When I was doing rehab, watching the other guys training, sometimes it was frustrating. But I just want to thank the physio who was working with me. He was patient with me and he kept encouraging me to be patient. I thank God that I’m back on the field. TM: Had Sekhukhune won promotion at the time?

ER: Yes.

TM: When you were released by Matsatsantsa and then went to join up with the national team, did you have offers on the table for your services?

ER: (Laughs) You know, some things happen for a reason. Before I went to the COSAFA Cup, I had already signed a deal with Sekhukhune. When I got injured, I had already signed a deal. They were taking care of me, with rehab and so on. In fact, when SuperSport said they won’t renew my deal, I was already negotiating with Sekhukhune.

TM: Really? Were you not worried about that pending automatic promotion case that involved them and Royal AM?

ER: Yeah, at that point I was worried, but with me knowing how football is, I had to seek advice from my agent (Mike Makaab) to see if they’d win the case. The coach (MacDonald Makhubedu) said he always wanted to work with me, so it made it easier to make the decision.

TM: But you were announced at Sekhukhune in January this year. Why not earlier, when you signed?

ER: We were just focusing on the injury. It was like a career-ending injury, so you wouldn’t want to announce that and then I don’t play. Although they signed me and did not announce, I was going to the training sessions. They were taking care of me with all the things, even the salary. So, when I was fit to play, that’s when they announced that they had signed me. But actually, I was the one who asked them not to announce my signing. This was before I went to the national team for the COSAFA Cup. I asked them not to announce it because I wanted to send a message to SuperSport before Sekhukhune would announce, but then I got the injury and it was not announced until January.

TM: Why did you feel you had to let SuperSport know? You’d already left them anyways…

ER: Yeah, I had already left, but I don’t like to burn bridges. They took care of me while I was there and I felt that I had to send them a message to say thank you for taking care of my family. That’s how I was raised. I did not want to make noise

about joining a new club before saying thank you to the club that took care of me, and then I would be able to move on with my life. It was just my formal message to

them. They wished me all the best and thanked me for the time I was there.

TM: How would you describe the time you spent there?

ER: It was in phases. I joined the club halfway through the season (in 2017/18). The team was struggling at the time, fighting relegation. We managed to survive relegation. The following season, we played in the MTN8 final, but we did not win. Then the next season, we won the MTN8. But my time there was in phases. During my first full season with them, I managed to scoop the Top Goalscorer award for the team, which was a good thing for me. But after that season, a lot of things started happening, like the change of position. I was no longer playing in my favourite position.

TM: Did that kill your progress then, playing more on the left wing?

ER: Yes, I was playing on the left. Yeah, that’s the feeling. If you look at how I play, you will maybe think I’m a right or left winger, but I always moved into those positions to create space for myself so that I could go into the box. I’m a mobile striker. Although I’m a target man, I’m mobile. I don’t want to be in one place. I’m always looking for space – that’s how I am. So, coaches see it differently. Some say with the kind of pace I have, it should be used in the wide areas so that I can take on players and get in the box, but there’s a lot to be done when you are playing in the wide areas. You need to track back and defend. Although you need to help out with the defending when you are a striker, there are certain areas where you defend up to. So, I felt I was playing more of a role of creating. I was providing more assists than goals when I was playing as a winger.

TM: Did you have the freedom, in the environment you were in, to say you were actually better as a striker and not a winger?

ER: I’m an honest guy. All the coaches I’ve worked with always asked me which position I prefer and I tell them straight that I’m a striker. I love to be in and around the box. That’s where I love to be. I respect coaches and if you decide to play me on the wing, I’m a professional and I’ll play there. Even if you play me as a centre-back, I’ll try to give you my all in that position. But when you ask me, I’ll tell you straight that this is the position I want (to be a striker).

TM: You were signed by the Tshwane side during the same transfer window that they let Jeremy Brockie leave for Mamelodi Sundowns. Did you not feel any pressure of having to fill his boots?

ER: Not pressure, because looking at myself and looking at Brockie, we are two different players. So, I wouldn’t say there was pressure because he has his own type of play and I have my own type of play. There was no pressure. It was all about me giving my game to them.

TM: But Brockie was lethal at SuperSport, so they may have been that expectation of having to score as regularly as he did…

ER: Yeah, obviously as a striker, the first thing you have to do is score. For Brockie to get all those goals, he was playing in his favourite position, you get it? With me, they managed to get something out of me in my first full season and then we changed (position). The time I had an injury at SuperSport, I was out for about six weeks.You know injuries always delay you because you want to be on the field. They are a setback, but everything happens for a reason. You just have to respect the process and trust God in everything. Although it’s hard and frustrating, you just have to take it and soldier on and stay positive.

TM: When the club let you go, did it come as a surprise?

ER: I saw it coming, to be honest. As a chairman, you’d want your player to give you everything. You know your player and what he can deliver, but I cannot give you that when I’m not playing in my favourite position. You saw what you saw when I was playing in my favourite position, so you can’t expect the same result when I play in a different position. It was difficult. I saw it coming, but it was also going to be hard because I was no longer enjoying football, to be honest. It was hard for me.

TM: But take us through how it felt to be released… ER: To be quite honest, I think I wanted change. I wanted to be with someone who would use me where I want to be used.

TM: So, are you being used the way you want to be used now? ER: Yes. I’m still finding my feet, but that’s where I would want to be.

TM: When you signed for Sekhukhune, did you expect that the club would do so well in their first topflight season?

ER: Obviously, as a new club, I knew that they’d make signings to stabilise the team. They were doing well in the GladAfrica Championship, so you’d expect them to want to raise their hand in the topflight. When you have something to prove, you always give your all. I knew that they were going to give teams some problems and I knew that they’d make signings.

TM: Why do you think the team has done well?

ER: I have to commend the signings of the team. They mixed experience with the energy of the young players. Imagine combining the energy and experience, you create something great.

TM: You made your debut against Swallows FC in February.

ER: It was good. I’m still coming back, so I have to go in gradually, you know. You play 45 minutes sometimes and other times you play 60 or 70. It’s been long, so you can’t just go straight to playing 90 minutes. Playing a game

is different from training. I’m happy that they are introducing me gradually now. I’m happy with the minutes.

TM: As a team, where do you think you can finish this season?

ER: As a new team, we don’t want to put pressure on ourselves, but we would want to try to maintain where we are and give our all. You’ll never know where we end up. You never know, maybe you slide in to qualify for the Champions League or Confed Cup.

TM: Would a team like Sekhukhune be ready for continental football though?

ER: Yeah. The team is calculative when it comes to the signings they make, so if we were to go play on the continent, I think we’d be able to because we have a lot of international players in the team. We have experienced players who have played all over.

TM: Lastly, are you looking at making a return to the national team at some point in future?

ER: I still have to think about that because a lot happened with my injury. I still have to discuss that with my agent, my family and all of that. We will sit down and come up with a solid answer.

TM: Fair enough. Thank you so much for your time, Evans.

ER: Thank you. ❐