Thembinkosi Lorch is the name on everyone's lips following his sensational return to action in which he scooped the Man of the Match award in Orlando Pirates' 2-0 win over Cape Town Spurs in the Carling Black Label Knockout.
The attacker has been on the sidelines for much of the last two seasons owing to injury, so his return was welcomed by the Bucs faithful, who had to wait to see their talisman back in action.
Very few of the ardent fans that follow Lorch's every move is aware that the Bloemfontein-born man once had a trial at the very same Spurs during their time under the Ajax Cape Town banner.
At the time, Lorch was a far cry from the star that he is at present.
In fact, as told by his former agent Karabo Mathang Tshabuse of P Management, Lorch was a budding star, hoping to break into the professional ranks.
At the time Tshabuse and her P Management team were keen on recruiting the budding star to their stable; however, she recalls how they had to prove to Lorch that they were worth their salt, by organising him a trial at a professional club, in this case Ajax.
The trip came at the cost of the company, with no guarantees that Lorch would be able to make the grade at the Urban Warriors.
"We scouted and spotted Thembinkosi Lorch at Maluti FET College and we approached him. Lorch was a bit of a difficult signing at the time because he was like, 'I'm not signing you until I see what you can do'. And luckily, we got him a trial at Ajax Cape Town. And that's when he signed with us.
"And so many people don't know the story is that he then went on that trial. We paid for the flights and accommodation for him and that's the risk an agent takes with unknown players. It was from our own pockets as you're talking about an unknown player, not the superstar he is today, you know.
"Ajax received him. He was there for a week and a half. We were giving him money for fast food, 'cause no one could cook for him, and Ajax were in the PSL at the time, turned around and said 'no thanks, he's not ready'," she recalls.
In the end, Lorch's assessment period yielded no results as Ajax passed up on the offer to sign him. He then enjoyed spells with Maluti FET College before being snapped up by Pirates who loaned him out to Chippa United for a season.
The 2019/20 PSL Player of the Season would come back to haunt Spurs almost a decade later as he put on a dazzling display for the Buccaneers, earning himself R100 000, a new innovation introduced by Carling for the new tournament, in the process.
While Tshabuse no longer represents the 30-year-old in a sporting capacity, she is in charge of his legal affairs under her company Tshabuse Law.
Ajax's loss in this case, appears to be Pirates' gain…
