Manqoba 'Shakes' Ngwenya was one of the crowd favourites during his time at Mamelodi Sundowns, but there were a lot of difficult moments for him at the club.
Famous for his skills and sweet left foot, Ngwenya had quite a number of memorable moments, but also struggled at times with injuries, game time and relationships with coaches. Soccer Laduma got in touch with him to talk about the years he spent with the Brazilians.
The years at Sundowns
I was at Sundowns for about five or six years. It was great being at Sundowns. I came in at a time when Patrice Motsepe had just taken over the club. I was one of the first signings the club made under Motsepe, together with guys like Hilton Jordan and Clement Mazibuko. It was a clear mandate from him that Sundowns should dominate in the PSL and on the continent. He wanted to dominate Africa, to be the best on the continent. As you can see now, the results are starting to show. Sundowns are competing in the Champions League regularly and the PSL is Sundowns' cup.
How the move happened
I remember I was getting calls from Mabush (Daniel Mudau) that the president wants me on board. I remember he came to Orkney Stadium when Wits (University) were playing against Kaizer Chiefs to watch me. After that game, the interest grew. I was getting phone calls, so I had to make the decision on whether I want to go to Sundowns or not. I believed that it was an opportunity to grow and I felt that the style of play suited me. I did not hesitate to join them.
The rands and cents
The money was a huge change, obviously. I think at that time, I was the record signing from Wits in terms of the money they got for me. Also, my salary had a huge incline in terms of what I was getting at Wits. It's something that changed my life and I was able to afford to buy a car and to make life easier at home. I was able to contribute and do things.
Who was in the team
When I got there, Mambush was still there. The likes of Dan Semake and Sipho Nunens were some of the players who I found at Sundowns. There were players who came shortly after me, like Surprise (Moriri) and Brian Baloyi. Star players were coming in at Sundowns, like Siaka Tiene. It was a star-studded side. Godfrey Sapula was there too.
My debut
For some reason, I cannot remember my debut for Sundowns. I remember by debut for Wits was against Sundowns, but I can't remember my debut for Sundowns.
The best player I played with at Sundowns
There's a few who really stood out. Surprise Moriri is one of them. He was just different, a different type of quality. You could see the quality oozing in him and how he was just friends with the ball. The ball would listen to what he says. He had a great first touch. He had that natural quality that was unmatched. There was also Siaka Tiene. He was left footed like me and the quality that came out of that left foot was different. It was something else. Those two stand out, but I could also mention someone like Godfrey Sapula and Peter Ndlovu.
Most memorable moment
That's easily the game we played against Barcelona. We played against Ronaldinho, who is and was my idol. I never missed a match when Barcelona were playing. They had a team with the likes of Xavi and Iniesta. It was a quality Barcelona team and playing against them was a dream come true. I rememer Soccer Laduma dubbed it as 'Ronaldinho versus Shakes'. It was great playing against quality like that. That was easily my highlight at Sundowns. Another high point is when Neil Tovey and (Miguel) Gamondi gave me a chance. I was the top scorer for the team that season and we won the league. But I remember I got injured when I had been called up for the national team. But I was able to show my quality and that was one of my highlights because we also got to win the league.
My lowest moment
There are quite a few because my career was filled with injuries. Sometimes I would have a coach who would just have a problem with me and I would train alone. There were a few of those moments, especially with (Hristo) Stoichkov. He never really gave me an opportunity at Sundowns. I used to train alone when he was at Sundowns, so that has to be one of my low points in the team.
Difficult conversation with president or coach
I remember I had issues sometimes with coaches like Gordon (Igesund). Gordon used to compare me to Steve Lekoelea at times because of the relationship I had with the president (Patrice Motsepe) and Steve had the same relationship, I think, with Irvin at Pirates (where Gordon Igesund previously coached). That's what he used to say. Also, the fans at Pirates loved Steve and I had the same thing at Sundowns, where the supporters loved me and the president appreciated. I think Gordon had that thing of 'don't think you are going to play because you are a crowd favourite and the president likes you'. That's one of the tough conversations I had with Gordon, but I eventually proved myself that I am my own person and that I can be in the team.
Why I left Sundowns
I just felt that time was not on my side and I had talent which I believed that I had only shown 30 percent of. I wanted to go somewhere where I would play week in and out and show my capabilities because I believed that I was one of the best. It was just not happening for me at Sundowns and I felt that my talent was being wasted. I wanted to go where I would be more appreciated, so that's why I left Sundowns. I eventually went to Botswana, where I became top scorer. When I came back to South Africa, I still had to look for a team. I could see that I was not convincing people with my talent, so I decided to call it quits on my career.
