IfI were toblame som ebody…

“The chairman, as much as he loves me, couldn’t tell the coach to play me.”

“I was supposed to play, not be sent out on loan so many times.”

Ju stice Chabalala introdu ce d himse lf to Orlando Pirate s fans in style back in 2 016 with backof to-back Man the Match awards, e stablishing himse lf as a first-te am re gu lar afte r joining from Fre e State Stars, whe re he was a mainstay. Howe ve r, to his su rprise , he was soon loane d ou t to Chippa U nite d. The lanky de fe nde r re tu rne d the following se ason, only to be loane d ou t again, this time to Bloe mfonte in Ce ltic, whe re he spe nt two campaigns. His late st loan stint was at Se khu khu ne U nite d. In the six ye ars he was at Bu cs, the 30-ye ar-old star only made 2 0 appe arance s. Inthisinterviewwith Socce r Ladu ma’s Toke lo Mokhe si, the Limpopo-born man make s a big admission, as we ll asopensuponhis re lationship with Irvin K hoza and why he couldn’tcrack itinto the te am.

Tokelo Mokhesi: Hosi Ya Mina, how are things at your new club?

Justice Chabalala:First of all, I would like to thank my chairman Irvin Khoza, Nkosana Khoza and Mpumi Khoza for giving me an opportunity to play for a big team, Orlando Pirates. They treated me like their son and I would like to express my gratitude as I am here today because of them. Also, I would like to thank Mr Chippa Mpengesi. He is like a father to me because we have been talking even when I was still at Pirates, Bloemfontein Celtic and Sekhukhune United. He is more like my father, hence I chose to join Chippa (United).

TM:Sounds like you have a oneof-a-kind relationship with the two chairmen…

JC:To be honest, I was at Pirates for a long time and they treated me very well and would constantly advise and guide me. So, for that, I think I’m blessed because I am Justice Chabalala because of the Khozas and Mpengesi as he urged me to go back home as he values me, hence I didn’t disappoint and went back home to Chippa. I also like Chippa United because if you remember, I played here before and they welcomed me very well. So, ja, I’m blessed.

TM: When did you know that the Soweto giants were going to release you?

JC:

As a player, I didn’t know that Pirates would let me go. After my loan deal at Sekhukhune, I went back to Pirates and shortly after, the chairman called me to the office to inform me that my contract won’t be renewed and the club had to release me. But I was okay because Khoza has done a lot for me and it was time for me to leave Pirates because I hardly played, man. I was not angry when I left, I was just fine. Even though I was surprised a bit, I had to take it as a footballer (and tell myself) that life goes on and find another team as I still have the energy to play.

TM: Tell us more about your meeting with Dr Khoza.

JC:When

he called me to the office, it was just a typical meeting, but I was surprised, to be honest. Khoza told me that they want to change the team and sign new and much younger defenders. Ja, man, that

was it. I believe that I have played my role at Pirates. I was shocked that I’m released, but it is football business and I didn’t take it to heart. I had to quickly move on. I left the club on good terms and I’m still in contact with my chairman Khoza, Nkosana and Mpumi simply because they love me a lot. There are stages in football and it was time to leave.

TM: Why were you surprised? After all, you hardly played at the club, instead spending several seasons out on loan at different clubs.

JC:Eish…

ha, ha, ha. I had a good relationship with chairman Khoza, my father, but when you get the news that you are being released at a place you feel loved and call home, a part of you becomes shocked. However, a part of me also understood that I had to leave as my time at the club had ended.

TM: You had joined the Buccaneers back in 2016 from Free State Stars. Would you say you were given a fair shot?

JC:Ah, to be honest, I didn’t get enough time or a chance to play at Pirates because if I check at the club, I only played for about a year or so in the six years I was there. When I returned from

loan at Chippa around 2017, I played a bit at Pirates but got injured, but I didn’t play as much as I wanted to.

TM: Was it ever explained to you by the different coaches who’ve been at the club as to why you just didn’t have a place in their team?

JC:

You know, my brother, the coaches are not the same and I can’t really blame them. If you are a player and the coach is not playing you, before you blame the coach, you must check yourself first. Maybe you are not pushing hard enough. Sometimes you can work hard but still fail to impress the coach. The only thing I could do was keep focus, be humble and put in the work. When I arrived at Pirates, the coach was Muhsin Ertugral and I played several games under him until he left. In came coach “Micho” (Milutin Sredojevic) and I played a lot of games with him in charge. With other coaches, I didn’t play, but I don’t blame them. If I were to blame somebody, it would be myself because I had to show them more, maybe work harder.

TM: Must have been a good spell for you under Ertugral and Micho!

JC:

Most definitely, I enjoyed my football under the two coaches.

TM: You have used the phrase ‘blame yourself’ a few times now. Are you implying that at Pirates you didn’t do enough?

JC:Every

day when I wake up in the morning to go to work, my family knows that I love my job and enjoy it a lot. When I go to the field of play, I work my socks off. Like, I believe I’m a hard worker, but coaches are different, like I said, and some prefer different types of players and I was probably not what they needed. I gave 110 percent, but it was not enough for the coaches.

TM: During your different loan spells, did you, at any stage, feel that you had done enough to impress the club and were confident of being kept permanently?

JC:

Yes, when I went to Chippa on loan, I played all the games and I did every well. I helped the team avoid relegation and coach Dan Malesela was very happy and Pirates wanted me back after that season. I thought I was going to play at Pirates, patiently waiting for an opportunity and I did well a bit, but unfortunately, I got injured and started to struggle and lost my place in the team. I then decided to ask for a loan move to Celtic for some game-time, where I played a lot, but I sustained a knee injury, was out for about two months but returned to action. When I returned to Pirates, I was sure that I was going to play, be given a chance to prove myself but, like I said, coaches are not the same. The chairman, as much as he loves me, couldn’t tell the coach to play me as his job is to hire us and the coach decides who to play. I then went on loan again, this time to Sekhukhune United.

TM: So, injuries had a role to play? JC:

Ja, to be honest, at Pirates I didn’t play a lot of games due to a few reasons. Yes, injuries also played a part in that as I struggled a lot. That’s why I didn’t play many games at Pirates.

TM: How did this affect your confidence?

JC: When the team is winning, with players in my position doing well, I don’t have a problem with that, I will wait for my chance. The competition at Pirates was tough as well. I remember when I came back from Chippa, Pirates ended the season in position two in the league and I played in some of the games. I understood that players ahead of me were doing well, but I also did well when I was afforded the opportunity to play.

TM: Do you feel there was a time where you played and did well but still got relegated to the bench or stands?

JC:Most definitely.

TM: Tell us more. JC:

If my memory serves me well, it was in 2019, during the Black Label Cup. We beat Kaizer Chiefs 2-0 with coach Micho and Rhulani (Mokwena) in charge. I’m grateful to the Pirates supporters. I mean, they voted for me to play after spending a whole year without any action. I played and performed well. Mind you, at the time I received a call-up to the Bafana Bafana CHAN squad. Bafana were set to play against Lesotho on July 28, a day after the Carling Cup, but I opted to play for Pirates as I wanted to prove myself at club level. I put in a Man of the Match performance, but the following weekend, we played against Celtic in the league and I was on the bench. I didn’t ask anyone why I didn’t play and the following game, I was in the grandstand. To be honest. I was not happy about that because I analyse my games and I still don’t understand why I didn’t play despite impressing in the Black Label Cup. But coaches see things differently and they know what they are doing. I kept on going and

didn’t give up, even though I wasn’t happy with the decision taken to leave me out of the team. I had to be strong.

TM: How would you sum up your time at Pirates?

JC:

I would say I failed at Orlando Pirates, my brother – that’s the truth. I was supposed to play, not be sent

out on loan so many times. So, I repeat, I failed. Unfortunately, I didn’t achieve my goal of playing regularly and win trophies with the club, but you will never know, maybe I will

play for Pirates again.

TM: You must be feeling quite sad that this ‘dream come true’ move that you made back in 2016 just didn’t work out in the end…

JC:I

feel okay, my brother, because I tried my best and things didn’t go according to plan. It happens. But also, not everyone gets to play for Pirates and play in the Soweto Derby, so I also feel blessed. I played about 20 games, which is a big deal

for me. I wanted to win trophies though.

TM: As one door closes, another one opens. It’s going to be a big season for you at the Chilli Boys!

JC:

So far, so good. I have nothing to prove. I have been playing the game for a long time and know what needs to be done. I’m capable. I just need to work hard for my team and ensure that we finish the season in the Top Eight. Not the ideal start to the season so far, but we will get there.

TM: Let’s leave it there, Justice. We wish you all the best.

JC:

Thank you so much, my brother. I would like to thank the Pirates supporters for the support, love and belief they had in me. I played my heart out for them and I still love them.

Washington, good to be with you here this week. You’ve been around for quite a while, playing for the likes of University of Pretoria, Stellenbosch FC, SuperSport United and now Marumo Gallants. Surely, you’ve got a story or two… or three, ha, ha, ha… to share with the Soccer Laduma. Thanks for the opportunity. I will start with my time at University of Pretoria. We had some interesting times there and one of the guys who I can remember there is Tebogo Monyai. Such a character he was! That guy had so many stories to share. In addition to that, he had answers for everything. There is a story he once told us while we were travelling by bus. He told us that he was on his way to one of the rural areas in Limpopo and he saw a cow on the road. Apparently, this cow was passing across the road. So, according to him, when he saw the cow, he had to apply the brakes. So, when he stopped, he saw a white person who was wearing a white gown, ha, ha, ha.

Wait a minute! So, you are saying that the cow Monyai saw crossing the road suddenly turned into a gown-wearing white fella?

Ha, ha, ha, yes! The cow changed. I don’t know how the cow changed, ha, ha, ha. He said that person just passed across the road, and he said he jumped out of the car because he wanted to follow the person who was wearing the gown, ha, ha, ha. How is that possible?

Ha, ha, ha. Interesting story…

We were telling him that he was lying. The guys were laughing at the story. That guy could talk from Pretoria to Limpopo, nonstop, I am telling you. He is such a character, but he is a good guy at the end of the day. He is a leader, and he had a good career. He pushed a lot of guys to achieve good things.

Sure. Tebza was indeed something else. His former teammates at Mpumalanga Black Aces used to tease him about his stuttering. But good guy, yeah.

Mame Niang is another character we had at Tuks. That guy acted like someone who had anger issues, ha, ha, ha. He would just react and then a minute later he would change. He was like the weather. Another thing about him is that he could tell a lie, ha, ha, ha. But it’s those lies that he would tell to make people laugh.

Well, a lie is a lie, does not matter the intention behind it.

At Stellenbosch FC, it was me who was usually telling the stories. I would come up with a lot of stories to make people laugh. Most of the guys there

• He enjoys watching action and horror movies.

• The big goalkeeper played cricket in high school.

• He supports Manchester City and Real Madrid.

• The Marumo Gallants man loves listening to African music.

• Arubi, who turns 37 on 29 August, was born in Mutare, the third most populous city in Zimbabwe. were ‘cheese boys’, managed to come out. Some of th eot her so I was trying to ones are weird and I can’t share them, pump them up ha, ha, ha. and make them laugh. I once told them that I went through a river full of crocodiles and I

Poor ‘cheese boys’, they must have believed every word you uttered! Yeah, they would sometimes say, “You guys can do anything.” You know how people talk about Zimbabweans, but it’s not like we do those types of things. We are good people.

True, true.

At SuperSport United, the funny guy was (Thamsanqa) Gabuza. He is a happy soul, and he is similar to Mame Niang. If you made him angry, he wouldn’t take it personally for long. The one thing about him is that he loved laughing at people’s clothes. There was a time where the guys were even scared to wear their own clothes because Gabuza would go check their clothes and say, “This is not real.” There was a day when we had a go at him. He was wearing these other jeans that had big pockets. We laughed at him so much and we told him that we never wanted to see those jeans again. Those pockets were so big that you could even put two balls in there and they would fit, ha, ha, ha.

Ha, ha, ha, we’ve heard about ‘deep pockets’… not sure about ‘big pockets’.

From that day on, I don’t think he ever wore those jeans again. I think he threw them away because I don’t remember seeing him wearing them again, ha, ha, ha. But Gabuza is a happy soul.

Tell us more about him, South African football fans absolutely love him…

You know, sometimes when we are in the bus, players just want to sleep and rest and all that, but Gabuza wants to talk all the time. But if he does not play well, he stresses. He can even go to sleep early. I remember there was a time when he missed a penalty… I think it was against (Orlando) Pirates. He missed the penalty and we lost the game. We were camping in Sandton, and he went straight to his room. He was inside the blankets, and we started laughing at him. He was saying, “I killed you guys.” He was asking what people were saying because he is one of those guys who can laugh at people who do not play well, but he will motivate you afterwards. Another who was funny is Kuda Mahachi. He was always with Gabuza and they would always laugh at people’s clothes.

Mahachi? Are you sure? He looks dead serious!

No, he is a funny guy that one. Aubrey Modiba is another one who was funny. He used to come to me and he always wanted to listen to my Zimbabwean stories.

Well, we also wanted to listen to your stories, and we’ve enjoyed them, so thank you so much for your time, Washington. Thanks for the opportunity.