Defenders of the Faith
give Telkom final that added edge
● Aggravated and agitated.
That’s how a lot of Cristiano Ronaldo fans felt after their idol was pipped to the Ballon d’Or post by Lionel Messi.
Not so Rushine de Reuck, who was left a tad sad and disappointed for different reasons.
De Reuck, the rock of the Maritzburg United rearguard, was rooting for his icon Virgil van Dijk to grab the 2019 gong of best footballer in the world.
There was no delight for the Dutchman. He had to settle for second with his dream of becoming the first defender since Fabio Cannavaro in 2006 to win the coveted prize.
Virgil remains a virgin
“There is no better composed and cool character in the business of defending than Van Dijk,” enthuses De Reuck. “He is very smart. He scores goals and that’s something I’d like to add to my game.
“I was a bit disappointed he didn’t win on Tuesday,” he said of Virgil remaining a virgin of the game’s absolute accolade.
Locally, De Reuck looks up to teammate and fellow centre back Nazeer Allie, 11 years his senior, because “of the way he reads the game. He is an intelligent defender and a great person. It’s in the way he eats and carries himself that tells you he is a model professional.”
How the Allie and De Reuck partnership carry themselves will be crucial when they confront the juggernaut that is Mamelodi Sundowns.
Their partnership has seen United concede the third least number of goals, a great tribute to a team that had to battle in the play-offs to retain their top-flight status. The men from Mamelodi and Maritzburg will maul it out at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday.
Mabhida is the scene where Sundowns last lifted a cup competition trophy, ironically in the Telkom Knockout final by beating Kaizer Chiefs 3-1 in 2015. Last month United upstaged the selfsame Chiefs 2-1 in the semis to secure their final slot.
Dad lived and died by the gun
That year, 2015, saw the mother of the four children, Theresa, a dressmaker, being reduced to a single parent when De Reuck’s father met his demise.
His old man, Roger, lived by the gun and died by the gun. “My dad was a gangster. Gangster or no gangster, he was my father. He passed away in 2015. He got shot. I have two brothers and a sister. Kalsteenfontein is a ghetto. It is hard growing up there.
“There were no good role models. I have friends who are in prison now. Some of them passed away. They also got shot. I’ve seen people getting hurt and stabbed badly.
“It made me realise this is not a life to live. That’s why I’m working so hard to make a success of myself.
“Soccer is my escape route from all the drugs. I do have a few good friends, we share the same dreams of being successful in life.”
A man with a strong affinity for family chose soccer as his drug of choice. He still pinches himself in disbelief now that he has made it in the Premier Soccer League.
“It’s unreal that I’m the only professional player coming out of there. I’m not only playing soccer for myself, but also to open their eyes so they can also follow their dreams, whatever they may be. People struggle where I come from. They only know Kalsteenfontein.”
So single-minded is he to succeed he left school in grade 11 and spread his horizons to Portugal. Then agent and now Nedbank Cup champions TS Galaxy owner Tim Sukazi put him on the Portugal pathway. There, he had a stint at Porto B and Parcos de Ferreira B.
Towering over towers
In only his second season at United, De Reuck is rapidly gaining a reputation not only as a reliable defender, but a producer of standout showings.
Striker Judas Moseamedi won man-ofthe-match for his brace that buried Chiefs in the semifinal. But De Reuck shut the door at the back, winning almost all aerial battles against Chiefs’ towering twin towers of
Leonardo Castro and Samir Nurkovic.
His important interception, when he cleared the ball between Castro and Nurkovic with a crucial toe-poke, proved a critical moment in the game as Chiefs were throwing everything and the kitchen sink at United. It was one of his valuable contributions in stemming a Chiefs tide.
Standout players like De Reuck, inevitably, attract the attention of vultures like Chiefs, Sundowns and Orlando Pirates who circle viciously around a selling club like United.
They lost Siphelele Ndlovu and Fortune Makaringe to Pirates.
Chair Farouk Kadodia must have anticipated moves for his most-prized asset by tying down De Reuck to a four year contract extension in August.
If United were a dream against Chiefs, they were dull as dishwater in the goalless draw with AmaZulu in the KwaZulu-Natal derby. That’s not the form they want to take to the final, their second in PSL history after they fell 1-0 to Free State Stars in the Nedbank Cup last season under Fadlu Davids. “They got one chance and scored. No disrespect to Stars, Sundowns are an upgrade of an opponent and have players with more cup experience than us. We need to have the right mindset. I know we will leave everything on the pitch.”