Double Dolly
Bafana star Keagan on why he chose Kaizer Chiefs
Deciding on where his newly born daughter would grow up was a huge determining factor in Keagan Dolly choosing to sign a three-year contract with Kaizer Chiefs.
Dolly told the Sunday Times that he spurned offers from north African teams because the person of the south wanted his child to be reared at home.
“There were a few offers in France, Egypt and United Arab Emirates but they didn’t tick all the boxes I wanted in terms of where my family will stay, where my daughter, my first born, will grow up,” said Dolly.
“My daughter is only two months old. It is something new, an amazing journey I’m in with my partner. I wanted to offer stability to my family and felt like Kaizer Chiefs, with the vision the team has I felt like this is the place to be.”
Even 10-time African champions Al Ahly didn’t catch the eye of the 28-year-old.
“There were a few negotiations going with Al Ahly but there wasn’t anything concrete. Other teams sent in offers but I wasn’t happy with any of that. The only place I was set on was coming home to Chiefs, with the vision the club has.”
The vision has lacked direction lately with a six-season spell seeing lofty standards of the past disappearing.
Breaking his fibula was a major hindrance to his not so fruitful and injury beset fourand-a-half-year spell at French Ligue 1 club Montpellier. Dolly though rates his stay in France as “a very good experience for me”, even though his return chalks his name on the board of SA players who could not crack it in Europe.
“I didn’t play as much as I wanted in France. I don’t regret going there. Not all of our paths are the same. Not all of us will get lucky when we go to Europe.
“I was one of the few that didn’t get the luck I needed to get through. It was the big injury when I fractured my fibula. After that it was a series of small injuries. I didn’t have much game time ...
“It was just me and my fiance and a bit difficult if you don’t have your foundation like your mom and dad you can talk to. It was a cycle I went through. I’ve grown as a person. It is in the past now. My focus is solely on doing well for Chiefs.”
Dolly has been a hot topic in the unforgiving world of twitter. We’ve got a marquee signing, cooed the Chiefs crowd. You’ve got a reject from us, scoffed Sundowns supporters while neutrals wondered out aloud if deferring his European dream for which he fought so hard didn’t amount to a downgrade.
They can go tell it on the mountains for all the son of Westbury cares.
“I can hear people saying it is a downgrade. How can it be a downgrade from wherever I come when I come home to one of the biggest teams in Africa?
“How can I be a reject from Sundowns if I won the Champions League with them and I was one of the important people in that team? How can they say I am a reject and all of that?
“I don’t look at all the negativity on social media. I think that’s the reason why I deleted the likes of Instagram and all of that because a lot of people are just negative out there.”
The club may be a new environment but it is populated by many faces familiar to the winger with 19 caps for his country.
“I’ve worked with many people at Chiefs at the national team, including people I worked with previously elsewhere. I felt loved ... brotherhood.”
Khama Billiat and Leonardo Castro are but two of those people who along with Dolly they were christened CBD by those who worship at the Chloorkop chapel when the trio formed a fearsome net-tearing threesome. Billiat and Castro haven’t exactly hit the high notes of the Chloorkop choir at Chiefs.
With coach Stuart, his plan might be different Keagan Dolly New Kaizer Chiefs winger
Reuniting with Dolly may well give birth to what a twitter user referred to as DBN. Not Durban but Dolly, Billiat, Nurkovic, Serbia striker Samir. The CBD is dead, preaches deacon Dolly and the high priest at the Chiefs chapel Baxter may have a new gospel for the trio.
“With coach Stuart, his plan might be different and he would want to use us in different ways. I don’t think people should start thinking about the CBD from Sundowns. We were different people then. We are at different stages of our lives.
“What happened at Sundowns was good for us. Now it is about helping the likes of [Happy] Mashiane, [Nkosingiphile] Ngcobo, the youngsters to grow.
“We never lost our connection. We are all matured now, we are all grown. We’ll try our best to help bring silverware to this great institution.” Detractors deride Chiefs as a great institution in name only.
“Would you say Arsenal is not a big team. Would you say Chelsea are not a big team?” Chelsea are champions of Europe.
“Ja, after how long? We need to start afresh with coach Stuart and all the new players. We have to come together and fight for one common goal. We have an end goal we are willing to work hard towards achieving.”