Former Bafana Bafana right back Bryce Moon has gone down memory lane to remember how he was hit by a raw full chicken on his back while taking a corner kick for Panathinaikos.
Moon spent three years in Greece, playing for Panathinaikos and then going out on loan to PAOK Thessaloniki. Soccer Laduma got in touch with the retired star to talk about how he moved from Ajax Cape Town in 2008 to the top flight of Greek football.
How the move happened
My move to Panathinaikos happened while I was playing in the 2008 AFCON (Africa Cup of Nations). Nasief Morris was playing in Greece at the time and he was the captain of Panathinaikos. He knew that they were looking for a right back, so he phoned the chairman of the club a day before our game and he said they should have a look at me and see what they think. I had a good game and then after that, the chairman called Nasief to say 'we want him to come on trial'. I went on trial and they were happy with me. That's how I signed for them. I also played for PAOK. I was there on loan. That was also another (good experience). I played in the UEFA Champions League and Europa League during my times with Panathinaikos and PAOK. It was an amazing experience. Some of the guys I played with are coaching all over in Europe and I keep in touch with them.
My first day in Greece
I do remember my first day. Nasief was already there in Greece and he waited for me at the airport. He picked me up and took me for lunch and he showed me a little bit around the town and he showed me the training facilities and then the next day I went to training. When I got to Greece, I could tell that the people were so passionate about football. When games are on, it's a whole day thing for them. From the morning, when the weekend games are on, the people are in the pubs, the restaurants and in the town and they are at the stadium early and they are getting themselves psyched up for the game. They are passionate and you actually feel like you owe it to them to go on to the field and fight for them. The derby between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos is like Chiefs and Pirates in South Africa. It's huge. If Panathinaikos are hosting the game and you support Olympiakos, then you shouldn't wear the colour red. They would not allow you into the stadium. I'll never forget one derby, the night before the game, they got into our depot and bust our bus up. This was when Olympiakos were hosting the game. They just wanted to mess with our minds. We were getting phone calls saying that people are waiting on the bridge to throw stones at the other bus that we had to get. The police had to go first to see if was clear for us to go through. It's something so different. There was a time when I was taking a corner kick one day against AEK Athens. Then I just felt something hitting me on my back. When I turned around, it was a full chicken. It was raw. It was just hilarious and I was shocked.
My debut
I can't remember my debut for the club in the league, but I can remember my Champions League. It was against Inter Milan and I was man of the match. For the second leg, Jose (Mourinho) said 'we need to contain Bryce Moon' because I think I hit the crossbar twice. I had a really good game (in the first leg).
The best player I played with
I think it would be between Djibril Cisse and Gilberto Silva. They were the two that I would say were the best, but I really did play with a lot of good players and most of them were national team players.
The best player I played against
I had a lot of good players I played against. I would say Sergio Aguero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Zlatan is taller than me and he's not easy to mark. I saw something on Tik Tok not so long ago where there was a guy that was marking and Zlatan's elbow was in his face. I could relate because that's exactly what happened to me. It's not because he is trying to be funny. That's where his elbows are - in line with your face. Aguero is short, but he is extremely strong. Getting the ball away from him is difficult.
Most memorable moment
My debut in the Champions League was a memorable moment for me. Representing my country was also special for me.
