Were it not been for Lyngby getting liquidated, former Bafana Bafana striker Bradley August may have had an even more successful spell in Denmark. He had a good two seasons with the club and Soccer Laduma got in touch with him to talk about the time he spent playing in the Danish topflight.
Club played for
It was in 1999 when I went to Lyngby and I came back home in 2001. I was there for two seasons and I was nice. It was cold, but nice. After three or four months you get used to it. The football was not bad and training was tough, very intense. The league was physical and we were in the topflight. I played regularly. I was a foreigner, I had to play all the games. It wasn't the rule, but once they signed you as a foreigner, you've got to show that you are there for business. I was happy with the time I spent there. It was brilliant. It was a nice environment and you get used to the culture.
How the deal happened
I was playing for Hellenic. We were playing against Kaizer Chiefs and the club actually had come to watch Siyabonga Nomvethe playing for Chiefs. They came to watch Nomvethe, but then they saw me. It was at Johannesburg Stadium. I will never forget that. Gavin Hunt was coach of Hellenic at the time and he came to me a couple of days later and said there is an offer on the table. There were no trials. The contract was there. I was shocked and excited. I went home and told my mother. I didn't know Denmark or Lyngby from a bar of soap and here they were offering me a contract. How lucky was I. It was unbelievable.
The rands and cents
I obviously got more than what I was getting at Hellenic. At that time, they were using Danish Krones as their currency. I am not sure if they still using that. So, money was good. We had a nice contract. I signed a four-year contract and the money was nice, but the tax was massive in Denmark. They take almost 50 percent of the salary, but it was still good and I was still able to survive and look after my family. I had signed four years, but the club got liquidated and then I came back home after two years. That was sad for me. Everything had to be sold and the club went down. That's why I came back after two years.
My first day in Europe
It was on a Sunday. I got out of the plane and I think it was minus 10. I almost got back into the plane. I put my jacket on and there were guys waiting to pick me up. The assistant coach was there to fetch me at the airport and they took me straight to the hotel. I can remember I put my bag down at the hotel and he said, 'do you want to go watch a game?' It was Brondby, but I forget who they were playing against. There were 30 000 to 40 000 people at the stadium and I could not believe it. What an experience. It was unbelievable how passionate they were.
My debut
I came on in the snow. The supporters knew about me from reading the newspapers, but they had not seen me play. It was a home game and I came on as a substitute when it was cold. I can't remember what the score was or who it was against. But it was an unbelievable feeling. The supporters were all shouting my name. They stood up and clapped. What a reception.
Best player I played with
I can't think of any players in Denmark.
Best player I played against
Sibusiso Zuma was brilliant. He was the best player that I played against. He was playing for FC Copenhagen. He was scoring goals, creating goals and going past people. He was just at a very top level. There are a lot of scouts who go to Scandinavia to look at players. Do you know how many scouts came to watch Zuma at that time? He was really doing well and he was playing for a big club. That was brilliant.
Biggest difference between SA football Europe
It was more professional and more organised. It was more structured. They are so professional in the way they did things. Everything they did was spot on, like the training sessions. Everything is really at another level when you compare it to South Africa at that time.
Any current PSL players who can play in Europe
There are a lot of guys playing in South Africa. You look at Peter Shalulile, you look at Teboho Mokoena and you look at Khanyisa Mayo. A lot of players can play overseas. We should be pushing to get more players to Europe. Lyle Foster has gone to Burnley and that's fantastic.
