Former Orlando Pirates defender Edward Motale has gone back into time to talk about how his move to the Buccaneers happened, as Mamelodi Sundowns also showed an interest in signing him up.
Soccer Laduma caught up with the 1995 CAF Champions League winner to talk about the two years he spent with the Soweto giants.
The years
I was there from 1994/95 until the middle of 1996. Everything at Pirates was good. I enjoyed myself while I was there and I won trophies like the league, the Champions League and the BP Top8, so it was great. I think if I had stayed longer at Pirates, I could have won more trophies. But I had to leave because of circumstances. I am still a Pirates, through and through. Nothing was ever going to change me. That's why I was always giving 150 percent when I was playing for Pirates.
How the move happened
They signed me from Dynamos. At the time, Dynamos was about to be relegated and that's how Pirates recruited me. Myself, Marks (Maponyane) and John Moeti went to Pirates. When I joined Pirates, the feeling was good because you are coming from a small team to a big team, so everything becomes different from where you come from - the crowd, the limelight. So, everything changes when you join a team like Pirates. But I was not surprised when they came for my services because, besides Pirates, Sundowns were looking for me. So, I was not surprised because I was playing good football while I was at Dynamos. I knew that I would still have a chance somewhere.
The make up of the team
We had a good team. I remember Shoes Leshozi, Innocent Mncwango, Helman Mkhalele, Bashin Mahlangu, Brandon Silent, Botsotso Makhanya, Williams Okpara and Teboho Moloi. We had a very strong team. The very same season, we won the league, so I believe we had a good squad and it was probably the best in the league.
The best player I played with at Pirates
That's a tough one. We were all the best because we won things together as a group. Unless you ask me who was the most skillful, then I would be able to say. But when you talk about the best, then I will say we were all the best because nobody wanted to be on the bench. Whenever you were given a chance to play, you would give 150 percent. It was like that with everybody in the team. In fact, that team was the best. Maybe if it was not dismantled, we could have gone far.
Most memorable memory
I think the best moments were when we won the league and the Champions League. Those are the ones which stand out for me. We beat ASEC Mimosas in the Champions League final. Those are big trophies, the league and Champions League. That's why I don't mention other trophies.
Lowest moment
It was when I had to leave Pirates, when (Viktor) Bondarenko forced me to leave Pirates. I tried to talk to the chairman and the manager (Lawrence Ngubane), but I could not get help and I decided that I was leaving. He (Ngubane) was bad-mouthing me because he was trying to create space for players from Manning Rangers. The late Lawrence Ngubane was managing players at Manning Rangers, so he was creating space for them at Pirates.
