Former Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Lebohang ‘Cheeseboy’ Mokoena has revealed that he didn’t know he was going to be transferred from Bucs to Downs, saying he understands why some fans were upset by the move.
Mokoena spent his development years with the Buccaneers where he went on to be promoted to play for the first team. The former South African international then moved to Pretoria in 2009 where he spent seven years.
The 39-year-old told iDiski Times senior journalist Matshelane Mamabolo in edition 241 of the newspaper how quickly everything happened and how he understands why Pirates fans felt hard done when he left.
“I grew up at Pirates, having got there as a 10-year-old and having to leave a club that took me in so young was very difficult,” Mokoena told iDiski Times.
“You must remember I was a fan favourite, and I could tell that to those fans that loved me and supported me, my move from Pirates was like a stab in the back for them.
“But the reality is that I did not know I was being offered to Sundowns. It happened so quickly that it was like one day I was a Pirates player, and when I next opened my eyes, I was there at Chloorkop.
“I understood why the Pirates fans felt I had let them down.”
Mokoena added that despite how things happened he didn’t sulk as there was still work to do, especially with the FIFA CONFED Cup looming and was glad to have national teammates at Sundowns.
“For me, it was all about thinking about my new bosses and for myself,” added the former Moroka Swallows man.
“The preparations for the [FIFA] Confederations Cup were already underway, and I’d not been playing regularly at Pirates. I had to change my mind-set and knuckle down to ensure I got game-time at Sundowns.”
“I was fortunate in that while I’d gone to a new club, most of the guys at Sundowns were my teammates at the national team [Bafana Bafana] – the likes of Vuyo [Mere], Lerato [Chabangu] and even [Sibusiso] Zuma.
“So I felt like I am at a familiar place with guys I’d played with, and it made my job of settling in and acclimatising easier.”
