Mamelodi Sundowns are on the verge of making history by winning the league title for the sixth time on the trot! When they host Cape Town City at Loftus Versfeld in their next league match on Tuesday night, barring the result from Chippa United v SuperSport United, they could sign, seal and deliver the DStv Premiership title with six games to spare! Such has been the Tshwane giants' dominance in the local football scene that they seem unstoppable. Soccer Laduma editor, Vuyani Joni, caught up with one of the team's prominent supporters, Robert "Mzekezeke" Nkosi to talk about the side's good run and his message to the Ka Bo Yellow Nation.
Vuyani Joni: Hola Mzekezeke! How does it feel to be a Mamelodi Sundowns supporter?
Robert Nkosi: Eish, to be honest with you, it is exciting. You know, I started following this team in 1985 and that means I have been following Sundowns for 38 years now! Sundowns won nothing in 1985, but they started winning and dominating for some time since then. There's something special about Sundowns because this team has never been owned by 'broke' people. We are lucky to have wealthy owners and that's why not just anyone can support Sundowns. This team is supported by special people, not just ordinary supporters, and they know what they want. They also know what they expect from their club, which is why they say: "Perseverance is the mother of success." When you patiently wait for something, you're going to eventually get it. Sundowns makes me a happy man and they've made me who and what I am today.
VJ: What do you mean about Sundowns being supported by special people?
RN: Most of the time, Sundowns is that 'can't get', if you know what I mean. It is not readily available to everyone, it is like there is a special group that qualify to become Sundowns supporters. We are talking about quality rather than quantity. For example, if Sundowns isn't playing, you won't find them going to support another team to oppose certain teams. It never happens! If we go to the stadium, we remain neutral and support football because our team is not playing. That's why I feel only special people support Sundows because other teams' supporters do exactly what I am talking about. Whenever Sundowns is playing against the so-called smaller teams, you find other teams' supporter ganging up against our team but we never do that to them. Why should everyone be against Sundowns even when we are not playing against them? That's why I feel Sundowns is a special team because everyone wants to see them lose and they never fight for a second spot, they are always about finishing on top in every competition they play in, while others will be happy to finish as runners-up.
VJ: They're sure to finish on top of the log even this season, making it a record sixth time on the trot. What do you make of your team's dominance?
RN: Sundowns is not your ordinary team. This is a project and there are short-, medium- and long-term plans in place. Right now, while everyone is talking about finishing this season strong, we already have plans for next season and we know where we need to be by the time we get to 2028, for instance. Sundowns is run like a project, not a football team. It is like, for instance, if you are making a tar road from here (Gauteng) to Egypt, there's a timeframe within which that project should be completed even before it begins. The same thing is happening at Sundowns and everyone knows what is expected of them, so there's no confusion. That's why this club was called Double Action Sundowns at some stage because we do everything twice as everyone else. When we sign players, we sign two or three players in every position so that injuries or suspensions don't become a headache. If one player is injured, life goes on and we continue as if nothing has happened. That's why I call our team a project because it is run like a company. Everything is done with the future in mind and this dominance is nothing new to Sundowns. The difference between our team and others is the vision that we have. We know where we want to be and we know we have to dominate all the time. I'm not talking about fly-by-nights who win a trophy and disappear for six years without winning anything and come back on the seventh year looking to win.
VJ: But…
RN: (Cuts in) Yes, there was a time when we went for six years without winning a trophy and when we were about to get to the seventh year, knowing that our sign is "seven", we changed all of that and never looked back. That six-year period was so painful and I know what some people … I won't mention names … are going through, but the end is still too far for them. We've always had some of the best players in the country and that culture has been maintained. What we are also doing now is to produce our own players every now and then. Our players have the same identity, so if you bring (Gaston) Sirino off, you introduce another 'Sirino' who is going to continue where the other one left off because our players understand our culture and philosophy. They all play according to our philosophy and even if you check the players we sign, they are players who are close to our style or players that will not take forever to learn our style. That's how we kill teams in South Africa and the continent because they don't do things the way we do.
VJ: Interesting. Anything less than a win from SuperSport United's next game away to Chippa United will see the Brazilians just needing a draw against Cape Town City to be crowned champions, mathematically, with six games still to go. What an achievement!
RN: Honestly, as Sundowns supporters, we only expect the trophy after our last game and then we celebrate. For now, it is all business as usual and we don't even worry ourselves about what others are doing or what is happening around us. We still have a target of winning all our remaining games and see where that puts us in the record books. We are not going to take our foot off the pedal just because no one can catch up with us anymore. We are all about maintaining our project and ensuring that we reach our targets. After what happened in (the) 2019/2020 season, where we won the league in the last 30 minutes of the season, we never want to see ourselves going through that anxiety ever again. We had our hearts in our mouths and that's not a nice feeling at all. Only amateurs will enjoy winning the league like that, not anyone from Sundowns, which is why we made sure to open a huge gap between us and the chasing pack.
VJ: Mhhhh.
RN: The other problem with South African teams is that they don't want to learn from Sundowns; instead, they just want to compete. Sundowns is a project, not just an ordinary team, so you also have to become a project in order to compete with us. Some are playing to save their status from relegation, while others are fighting to finish in the top five, yet they want to compete with us. Remember when President Patrice Motsepe bought Sundowns, he made it clear that he wanted to dominate domestic and African football. Some people laughed at him and even suggested he must buy Makhaya Ntini, as the team kept on buying quality players without any success to show for it. They ridiculed our president, saying he knew nothing about football, but the man remained focused on his project and look at his project now and also look at the position he's in now in the continent. This goes to show that everything done at Sundowns is well thought-out and planned, not an accident.
VJ: Winning the league with six games to spare is no child's play.
RN: To tell you the truth, we won the league after the first 10 games! That's where and when we won the league, not now. I knew no one would stand in our way after playing the way we did in the first 10 fixtures. If you want to win or even challenge for the DStv Premiership, you have to get 15 points from your first five games and then maybe seven in your second five games, or vice versa, then you will be putting yourself in a position to compete. You do that, then come the end of the first round, you will have 30+ points in the bag, but if you don't want to win the league, keep playing unnecessary draws and lose games only to finish the first half with less than 20 points. I see a lot of teams rushing to drive on the yellow lane thinking they are safe, but the safest and smartest people drive on the fast lane, like Sundowns. You run the risk of being stopped and booked by the traffic cops on the yellow lane, which will make you even later for your appointment. The same thing applies in football and if you think you are going to drive on the yellow lane in the second round, desperate for points, you will get booked. I see a lot of teams desperate for points now when they should be wrapping things up. They are running late because, unlike Sundowns, they are not a project. Some are fighting to avoid relegation, some are looking to make the Top Eight bracket, while others are battling it out to join us in the continental competitions. They are under so much pressure, while we are only busy with final touches. We are well ahead of schedule with our project.
VJ: That means Sundowns can rest players now with the league done, and focus on the Nedbank Cup and CAF Champions League with fresher players, right?
RN: Some people would look at it like that but not at Sundowns. Every game is important to this team and it means something. We don't just play for the sake of honouring fixtures. We never rest players because there's always something for us to play for and our squad is so talented that it doesn't allow us to rest players. Like I said earlier, coming up second doesn't work for us in everything we take part in. Our trophy cabinet has no space for runners-up trophies or medals. That's why we are looking to win all our remaining games so that we maintain our pride. We don't just play anyone and say, "Hey guys, let's give Mzekezeke a chance because we've won the league already." No, not at Sundowns! Mzekezeke has to reach a certain standard to play for this team and he is not going to be done a favour just because the team is winning.
VJ: Playing at home in your next game against the Citizens, it would be important for the supporters to come out in numbers to celebrate.
RN: We've been encouraging our supporters to come to the stadium from the very beginning of the season. It is important to finish what we have started. When you run the race, you run it to win it. You can't run and leave everyone behind, only to disappear just before you reach the finish line. Never! You have to be crowned for your hard work and I'm appealing to our supporters to come out in numbers to celebrate our boys. Even those who gave up saying we win too much, they must also come back because we need them. I know they've made enemies from Sundowns' success, but please forgive them and come support our team. Everywhere I go, people look at me in a funny way and say, "Here comes the one who wins all the time." I always tell them to come and learn from Sundowns. I even told a PSL coach the same thing and he was surprised to hear those words coming from me. Come and witness our boys finish the race we all started together.
VJ: Before we let you go, any message to Sundowns players?
RN: I know how difficult it is to maintain the pride and dignity of this club. I also know there is no off-day at Sundowns because we play in every competition, so you hardly have time for your families. However, we really appreciate you and please keep it up because we are almost there. We are very proud of you, guys, and you make us the happiest supporters around. You know how important it is for the father to always be happy, it makes everything flow in the house, so we thank you guys for that. Because of your hard work, we are no longer 57 supporters now as I have seen a number of new faces jumping ship to join us now, but they will be vetted so that they don't mess with our identity and style.
VJ: To the technical team and management?
RN: May they continue to work hand-in-hand for this wonderful club because their leadership is very important. Their unity is what has kept this team going strong, so let them not stop what they are doing.
VJ: Mzakesman, thanks so much for your time.
RN: You're welcome, my brother. I thank everyone who works for Sundowns for their wonderful job because they all contribute towards the team's success.
