Nomvula Kgoale sprang to prominence during the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations tournament, which South Africa won in Morocco to become champions of the continent. She endorsed her feminism by always applying bright red lipstick throughout the tournament and by the time it ended, she was dubbed “Lipstick Lady”! The Zebediela-born star has become an integral part of Desiree Ellis’ team, who defied the odds to advance to the knockout stages of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. In this interview, she reveals to Soccer Laduma’s Thomas Kwenaite what lessons she learnt from the global showpiece, shares her views on the welcome growth of women’s football in Mzansi. Kgoale also explains why she chose TS Galaxy to pursue her career locally following stints in Spain and the United States.
Thomas Kwenaite: Looking back at the World Cup tournament Down Under, how would you summarise the event?
Nomvula Kgoale: There are so many thoughts and emotions that are going through my head as I speak, but it was a rollercoaster. If you remember, the first game against Sweden we lost 2-1, but we also felt we could have pulled a draw. In my opinion, it was the most difficult game compared to the other games. The second game was against Argentina – we were 2-0 up and we thought we could pull a win there, but again, we let it slip out of our hands, and in that particular game, the only emotion I felt was anger. I felt that we were supposed to win that game, but that was not the case. The third game was against Italy, we had to pull a magic win because we needed it in order to go through to the Round of 16. We really believed that we could and that’s what we did. In the knockout against the Netherlands, that was a game we should have won, especially in the first half because we got so many scoring chances! But we never capitalised. However, with experience, I think it’s one of those games that are mystical, they will forever be engrained in our minds and in our heart. For sure the highlight of my career.
