Everyone respected the great Sugar Ray

THE late Cedric “Sugar Ray” Xulu was not only a darling to his admirers because of his magic on the field of play but his teammates also adored him and looked up to him for inspiration.

When they needed someone to turn the game in their favour, Sugar was the man. He was extremely quiet, but, “Gee whiz, give him the ball!”

That’s how Vuma Mfeka, who played alongside Xulu at AmaZulu, described the legendary player who became a household name in football in the 1960s.

“Most of the times players are fan favourites but Sugar was adored by his peers. He was the players’ player. What a talent! He was not a man of words. You will find him with his jersey tucked inside. He was very clean. He retired without even getting a red card,” Mfeka recalled.

Xulu passed away on Monday at the age of 81.

The archives show that he was the hottest property in the country between 1960 and 1970 while in the colours of Usuthu.

“People always complain that prominent figures are honoured when they are gone but that wasn’t the case with Sugar,” said Mfeka.

“In 2001, President Thabo Mbeki honoured him with a presidential award. The eThekwini Municipality named a stadium after him. What more can you ask for? He was instrumental when AmaZulu won the cup in 1972. He was such a valuable contributor, he would score a goal with two minutes remaining. An absolute genius!

“His ball distribution skills were unmatched – his control was like he’s passing the ball with his hand.

He combined well with the likes of Ace Mnikathi and Eric ‘Nduna’ Ngidi upfront. He would never fight anyone and that’s why we respected him.

“The whole of South Africa has lost massively. In the 1960s when a South Africa Black XI played against White XI, a helicopter was sent to fly him to Johannesburg, where the game was played. He came on in the second half and scored a goal as the Black XI lost 3-1. He netted a magnificent goal,” Mfeka recalled.

“In Brazil they praise Pele and in Argentina they praise Maradona, and I believe that Sugar is at that level.

“To preserve such history, I think, we need more documentaries. Dez Khumalo (the author) tried. He wrote the book ‘Ngibuka ngeso Lesihlabani’ (Through the Eyes of a Genius). The book didn’t get that much hype because (our) people are lazy to read.”