Nkanyiso, with this being our final edition of the year, who better to end the year in style with and give the Soccer Laduma readers something to laugh about after what has been a strenuous year.
Thanks for the opportunity, my brother.
You have been around in the game for a while and even played for Jomo Cosmos. With Jomo Sono as your coach, you must have had one funny moment too many at the club…
Yeah, I've been around, and I had a good time at Cosmos. One moment that I remember while I was there, and it went on to social media, was when our bus driver, Bra Sy, was driving the bus. People on social media kept on saying, "Even Jomo is driving the bus." That was funny because he looks like Bra J (Jomo Sono). He was wearing a cap like Bra J normally would, so it was really funny, ha, ha, ha.
Ha, ha, ha, we remember that picture very well! Are you really telling us that was not Bra J!?
I kid you not! One thing I remember about Jomo was that he used to dance for us.
That must have been lots of fun.
Yes, ha, ha, ha. He used to show us how they dance there in Limpopo. That was really funny. Just imagine, he used to dance for us. We won the league with Jomo and we got promoted to the topflight and I remember he was dancing for us in the change room, ha, ha, ha.
Awesome!
He showed us how it's done. He would do those energetic and fast types of dances. I don't know how to do the moves, but it was those dances you would see in Limpopo.
We all wish we could have seen that, ha, ha, ha.
It was nice. Another thing about Bra J is that he used to tell us so many stories, like when he was playing back in the day. He used to share those stories and some of the stories were funny and others were meant to build. He was a good guy and I enjoyed my time there. So, when I went to Sekhukhune United, I was introduced to coach MacDonald Makhubedu, who is the same character as Jomo.
For real?
Yes, ha, ha, ha. They are the same character, I don't want to lie. He used to have so many stories and he also used to dance for us, ha, ha, ha. He always used to emphasise that he is a village boy. You would hear him say, "I am from the village" and he would tell us how much girls used to want him and how he used to dress back in the day. So, Bra J and coach Mac are the same type of characters. I saw Jomo in coach MacDonald, so I really enjoyed that.
So, you had the pleasure of working with coaches who enjoyed dancing for you guys…
Yeah, ha, ha, ha. The nice thing is that they would share jokes and at times they would also ask if you were fine. They played a father-figure role. It's nice when you have coaches like that because you know that they believe in you.
You were fortunate. But let's move on.
Yes, so one of the funniest characters I played with was Linda Mntambo. I played with him at Cosmos and Sekhukhune. You would never see that guy angry. He would dance, share jokes and laugh all the time. He does not change. He also loves fashion. He will tell you straight and say, "I am from Scotland." He would come to training wearing a skirt and we would wonder why, ha, ha, ha.
Ha, ha, ha, classic Mntambo. He loves his fashion…
He will say, "I am from Scotland" because you know how the men in Scotland dress, ha, ha, ha. He is really into fashion, so he loves a lot of things in fashion and he is even doing modelling now. So, it's something that he is really into. My character is different. I am that shallow guy and I am sure they would laugh at me if I were to wear a skirt, especially Brandon Parusnath. I was playing with him at Sekhukhune. He can speak IsiZulu, so I know he would have said something if I had done that, ha, ha, ha. Another funny character is Edwin Gyimah. He liked showing us the things they do in Ghana, like dancing and acting and so on, just to make us happy or encourage us. He was one of the funniest players at Sekhukhune. He liked doing that signature move, the slaughtering one. Then he had a way of putting up his shorts and you will see every muscle in his legs, ha, ha, ha. He is someone who enjoyed his time, but he was serious when it was time to work. When everything is done and we have the three points, then we share funny moments with guys like him in the dressing room. I really enjoyed my moments at Sekhukhune, especially when we won promotion to the topflight.
Ha, ha, ha, Gyimah, what a character. Thank you so much for your time. Enjoy Christmas and hopefully you will be able to find a club in the new year.
Thank you so much. I am waiting for the January transfer window (to open), so I am going to be busy.
By Tshepang Mailwane
