When I Met Soccer we Clicked!

When I met soccer we clicked. I met soccer sitting in a shack in Bekkkersdal in the west rand. Fiddling with the radio knob trying to get Lesedi FM. It was Pirates playing against Chiefs in 2001.

Baba Mthethwa was behind the radio commentating and he painted the pictures with his skills so much that I was transported imaginatively to Orlando Stadium.  The exaggeration was real so much that I wished the game should not stop. Before the actual game as players were walking to the pitch, Baba Mthethwa acknowledge the beauty and hairstyles players had. Steve Lekolea had corn rows so perfect you could trace each one, Jabu Pule and Stanton Fredericks had dyed their hair goal and black. It was a whole spectacle that spoke not only about the game but the swag. This is when I met soccer.

When I met soccer it was in a derby and ever since then my love for soccer has grown. But I wish I could then back the hands of time and go revive the spirit of the derby. The derby is coming up on the 4th of March and as it has been tradition over the years, players will walk out of the tunnel in bald heads or dreads and you kind of ask yourself if they know that this is not a derby but a South African parade to show the world what makes us great footballers and entertainers.

The fans roared back then and both Pirates and Chiefs fans hugged and shook hands that may the best team win but more important may South African football win. It was fun and lively. Today when the players walk out of the tunnel people are on their phones, people are taking selfies and we fight and forget that we are here to celebrate a spectacle.

When I met soccer it was through radio and all images where real and I remember cutting newspapers for team photos and sticking them behind my door. When I met soccer it was through a derby that was entertaining. South Africans let us revive the spirit of the derby when the Soweto giants meet on the 4th of March.