He knows I want to play

“Everything that the game has done for me, I feel like I owe the game a lot.”

Biding your time in football can be the most frustrating thing ever for any player, especially if said player believes he has done everything within his control to ensure the coach gives him the nod. It may be referred to as ‘warming’ the bench, but sitting on the sidelines and watching your team win, lose and draw week in and week out, must be one of the coldest feelings ever. Any footballer content to sit it out and collect a paycheque at the end of the month is not worth his weight in gold, and for Boalefa Pule, three official matches in four seasons at SuperSport United is a scary statistic. But what do you do when you are competing with Ronwen Williams, whose stature as one of the top players in South Africa is on the rise, the Bafana Bafana captainship being his latest achievement. In this interview, Soccer Laduma’s Delmain Faver learns of Pule’s incredible sportsmanship and positive attitude, as well as a fantastic example of how to handle oneself in times of adversity as a player. But for how long?

Delmain Faver: You’ve had to play second fiddle to one of the most consistent keepers, Ronwen Williams, for a number of years at SuperSport United. Others in a similar predicament would have packed it in by now.

Boalefa Pule:

Yeah. Firstly, how can I summarise it? Because this is a question I get (in) almost every interview. For me, I chose the position knowing very well what it requires from someone. You have to be a patient somebody who believes in themselves, and I’m not one to quit from a challenge. People have been asking, “Why don’t you go try your luck somewhere else?” Also, you must remember, if I leave here, there must be interest from a third party or fourth party or fifth party. If you remember, there was interest from AmaZulu FC, I went there, I played, I enjoyed myself. Surely SuperSport also saw what I can do. Coming back to competing with Ronwen, I think he was 19 and I was 20 when we started competing against each other. He is a very professional guy, very friendly guy, easy-going guy that you can have competition with. We have a very healthy competition. I support him, he supports me, because I think the biggest thing that this period has taught me about life is that you have to continue clapping until it’s your turn so that others can clap for you. You see, unfortunately, it’s not my turn. But I’ll keep on clapping because I know my time will come, no matter how long it may take. But this situation has taught me a lot of things, and even about life outside the grass. It has taught me to be patient with myself with things that don’t go your way in your life. I have kids, I have to understand that they are different. My first-born is different to the second-born. The patience taught me a lot of things. So, for me, it’s tough at times. I don’t want to lie, it’s tough at times, because you play well when you play, then you have to come out and wait for your chance again. But I believe that whenever the team has called for my services to play, I’ve delivered very well and I’ll even do it again, because I think I’m happy here. Any thought about leaving, it’s not on my mind. It’s not like I’m comfortable sitting on the bench. I’m pushing very hard because if I’m pushing, you must know Ronza is pushing as well. If I’m giving 100%, surely he’s giving more than that. Every day, I have to increase my challenge to him to show that I also want to play. He knows I want to play. He knows George (Chigova) wants to play. He knows we’ve got two youngsters who are doing extremely well in the DDC (DStv Diski Challenge). So, it’s not even easy for me because George wants to be part of the team. Even those small boys, they want to be part of the team. Our competition as goalkeepers at SuperSport is nice because we I think we are giving the coach a nice headache.

DF: How do you stay motivated? BP:

I think the trick with goalkeeping is you have to stay ready. In doing that, you’re sort of creating habits not knowingly, because habits lead to consistency, discipline, those things. So, for me, it’s a daily routine. I know when I come up here, I must train like I’m going to play on the weekend because anything can happen. If Ronza gets injured, I’m the next one to play, so if I’m not ready, then I’m gonna lose my chance to play. Over the years, I’ve been someone who says be ready for anything, be ready for the next challenge, be ready, train like you going to play, train like you deserve to play. That has always been on my mind. Whenever I come to work, I love this game. I respect this game because I’m who I am because of this game. If you know where I come from, I was privileged to get free scholarship. Everything that the game has done for me, I feel like I owe the game a lot. So, for me, it’s just respecting

the opportunity that God has granted me because if we think about it, how many youngsters want to play in the PSL? You have to respect your job, respect your passion, protect your passion. How do you protect that? Staying disciplined, creating good habits, you maintain your professionalism, you maintain everything. So, for me, it’s not a job, but it’s just living your passion. It’s easy to live your passion because passion will create a lot of things for you. I believe that my habits are the ones that carry me through because from a young age, I’ve always loved and respected the game.

DF: Has the thought of leaving, even if on loan, crossed your mind in the last few years?

BP:

Yeah, it did, a lot. When we started, I said it’s not easy because you are fighting something that’s strong, which is the burning desire to play, and to remain calm in the midst of all these things is very difficult. Fortunately, whenever I want to go, I’ll talk to Mr. Stan Matthews (CEO) and tell him my plans and he’ll also tell me his plans about the team. Like, I can’t just come and tell the management I want to go and force a move. I have to align my plans with the team’s plans. I remember 2014/15, when I went to Wits, they just signed George from Dynamos, then I thought this is a chance for me to play. Sometimes you just need a change of environment. You don’t want to dwell in your comfort zone. You have to challenge yourself. I went there with Moeneeb (Josephs) and then you see how the guy is 38 and still hungry and you are still young. That sparked mygamewhenIcame back. I think I came as a different keeper who looked at the game in a broader angle now and I said, ‘I’m ready now.’ In 2017 again, I think coach Stuart (Baxter) was still here, when he left for Bafana, I felt that burning desire again. I went to Mr Stan again. I told him I’d like to go. That’s when I went to AmaZulu. You keep on having those times when you feel like now I’m ready to play. Now I’m not saying that you’re not ready to play because you come to training. But when you want to be active, you want to be involved every weekend, smell the grass every weekend. So, I do get those days, I don’t want to lie. But the biggest thing is you have to respect your family. First, you have to talk to the elders. They will let you know. We’ll create a path away from whatever you want to achieve to whatever the team wants to achieve. You don’t have to fight the team and say you want to go out and play because remember, you have a contract. You have to respect the team.

DF: Chigova’s addition has obviously added not only pressure to you, but to Ronwen as well. What does he bring?

BP:

I’ve got all the respect for George because the way he trains, knowing his situation, takes guts and it takes a lot of big personality to accept that because George is an international keeper. We mustn’t forget that he’s got so many caps for Zimbabwe. He has done well for himself in the last five years. He was with Polokwane City. It’s unfortunate (that) when he came, maybe… how can I say? Maybe Ronza was on form and so was I. But we rotate it, man, because before this season, I broke my hand. If people remember, I broke my hand before the season started. So, it was tough for me because I knew in my head it’s a big challenge for me to topple those two for positions. I had to really come back and wait as much as I could. So, the rotation is healthy, man. There’s nothing I can say, just to encourage him wherever he is because he knows the brotherhood between ourselves as goalkeepers is strong. We push each other. We always tell ourselves, ‘Train like you want to play.’ Anything can happen because when he plays, he knows you’re gonna clap for him, and when I play, I know they’re gonna clap for me. When Ronwen is playing, even if it’s in the national team, he knows that those are the guys I can rely on.

DF: In 2020, you signed a three-year deal. Talk of loyalty!

BP:

When they offered me that contract, given my situation and given the years that my situation has prolonged, it was something that I didn’t expect. It is a great privilege and a great honour for me to be still part of this club. That’s why I said I owe football, I owe this team. I owe everything to the board members, Mr. Graham Abrahams and Mr. Stan, (as well as) coaches that I’ve played under during my time at SuperSport. Obviously they can see what I can deliver for the team and hopefully, I stay fitandIstaygroundedandremainthe person I am to serve the team because they’ve given me the chance when no one really took the chance. Coach Gavin (Hunt) is the one who gave me a chance to sign for SuperSport and I always thank him for that, he knows. For the team to show the amount of appreciation in your talent, it’s something that one can’t take for granted. I’m really grateful for the team. Because you know, in these current conditions of football, loyalty is something that we as players and teams fight about. But at SuperSport, we have a culture and it’s like a family. If you do things right, they will do right by you. I believe I’ve always been on the right side of football, so the football gods also played a huge role.

DF: You’ve had a front row seat to witness Ronwen go from development product at SuperSport, to the number one goalkeeper in the country. Must be a real inspiration for you.

BP:

I always say the best teacher is football. Ronza was very fortunate to get those lessons when he was young. He has played nearly 400 games and for me to witness that, to have walked the journey with him to reach that milestone… I think he should be proud, man. He turned into a man. Even outside football, he has changed a lot. The thing is the amount of responsibility that he is carrying for the team has made him a bigger person. But I’m really, really happy for him. He knows that we are close, we talk about these things. We talk about Bafana. I remember there was a point where I could see in his face that he wanted to be there, but the time was not right. We used to speak about it. We said the time isn’t right. But look at what God has created now. It’s very nice to see everyone’s enjoying himself. Being captain of the team is a cherry on the cake, but I still feel he has got a long way to go. He’s only starting to enjoy the maturity of his career now. It’s gonna come and come and come, he’s gonna be a better keeper. It’s my opinion. If he’s not one of the best that we have currently, he can achieve that still. If people are still doubting that, he still has space to close that gap. He has grown so much that we as SuperSport are grateful to have him. I’m grateful to compete with someone of his stature. ❐