Edelbert Dinha can remember vividly how he would get home by 6pm because he was scared of Johannesburg, as he shared his interesting times with Soweto giants Orlando Pirates.
Soccer Laduma tracked down the former Pirates captain to talk about the years he was with the Buccaneers, which saw him winning the title in his first campaign in 2002/03.
The years
I was there from 2002 to around 2006. My time at Pirates was fantastic and the quality of players was great. It was a tough competition. It was the type of competition where if you would snooze, then you would lose.
How the move happened
John Comitis called me into the office at Ajax Cape Town and he told me that Pirates were after my services. He asked me if I would want to go and I said 'yes'. It's one of the big clubs and one of the best in Africa, so who would not want to play for Pirates? That's how the deal came about. When John told me, I felt good. For a foreigner to be recognised by a club like Pirates, then it means they saw the quality in me. I met the chairman Dr Irvin Khoza when I came to Joburg, as well as the late Zodwa Khoza who made me feel comfortable. Also, the late Papi Khomane welcomed me and made things easier for me. He was a good friend of mine and it's so sad that he is gone. He was a very good guy. My home boy, Innocent Chikoya, was also there. Settling in was not difficult for me.
My first day at Pirates
My first day was okay. When I was at Ajax, we played Pirates a lot and the funny thing is that we would beat them most of the time. There was no need to be introduced because everybody knew who I was and what I was capable of doing. The players made me feel at home. I was scared of Joburg. I would go to training and then go home. I made sure that I was at home by 6 pm because I was scared of Joburg. As time went on and I interacted with the players, they told me that Joburg is safe. Then I started getting used to it.
My debut
I think I made my debut in the Telkom Charity Cup. If I am not mistaken, we played Kaizer Chiefs. I am not sure if we won or lost that game, but I remember it was at FNB Stadium. I remember the crowd was fantastic. It was magical.
The make up of the team
I remember the team so well. We were coached by Roy Barreto. We had Williams Okpara. At right back, it was Lucky Lekgwathi or Jimmy Tau. At left back, we had Abednego Netshodwe. In central defence, we had OJ Mabizela and Papi Khomane. I played in central midfield with Benedict Vilakazi. On the right wing, we had Joseph Makhanya and Steve Lekoelea. Lebohang Mokoena was coming up as well. It was good competition. Upfront, we had the late Lesley Manyathela and Jimmy Kauleza. On the left, we had Gift Leremi. Some of the other players we had in the team were Goodman Mazibuko, Hleza Mofedi and the late Bheka Phakadi. We had a lot of quality in the team. The following season, Kosta Papic and we were called the 'Happy People'.
The best player I played with at Pirates
There was too much quality. I cannot single out one. You look at Gift Leremi, Joseph Makhanya, OJ Mabizela, Benedict Vilakazi, Lucky Lekgwathi and the late Lesley Manyathela. It would be difficult to single out one. The players I've mentioned all went on to play for Bafana Bafana or the under-23s.
Memorable moment
Gift was a character. Gift would come for training the one day and he would not greet anyone and he would not say a word. After training, he would shower and leave. Then the following day, he would be the loudest person. He was like that. That stood out for me. He was such an incredible player. Gift was destined for Europe. He was a character and a special player.
Why I left Pirates
You know, there comes a time when you need to leave and bring in new blood.
