Football is discipline and Intellect

This week we celebrate Nomvula ‘Nomi’ Kgoale, born in Zebediela, Limpopo, currently residing at Botlokwa which is also in Limpopo. She was attending at Nkgoso Primary School (in Zebediela)until Grade 4, she then, transferred to Botlokwa Primary School to finish off her Primary education. She attended her Grade 8 at Mokopane Academy of Sports. From Grade 9 until she matriculated, she schooled at Tuks Sport High School in Pretoria. The first 5 months post matric, she studied Bcom Law at the University of Western Cape and the rest of the year she transferred to Lindsey Wilson College in the U.S.A. The following year, she transferred to a Junior College called Tyler Junior College to which she also transferred to Louisiana Tech University where she graduated in Geographical Information Sciences (Geospatial Engineering). A lot of people were scouted and introduced to football, but with Nomvula it's a different story as no one in particular introduced her to football. She shared her story as to how she got to play football and said, “word went around at my first Primary School that there was ladies soccer available after school for those interested. My cousin, Tshegofatso Sihlangu, suggested that we go and I just agreed. I began playing soccer in 2003-2004. I began playing as a center back and gradually alternated with midfield. When I moved to Botlokwa, I began playing with boys full-time until a Women’s League was launched. From there, I played countless Provincial games until I was scouted by Jomo Mabotja at Mokopane Academy. He, quickly, transferred me to the High Performance Center(HPC) to which is a “gateway” into the grooming of National Team players to this day. I represented the National Team from the U17, U20 and the Senior Team (Banyana Banyana) while I was at the HPC. I also was part of the team that first qualified and played in the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Trinidad n Tobago in 2010. I refuse to dwell on the U20 and Banyana Banyana experiences at the time because I’ll need more space. Nearing the end of my time at the HPC, I began eyeing TUT as a potential team for me to join after we played a friendly match against them. They gave us such a hard time that I felt, undeniably, drawn to them. Hence, my irresistible appearances at the Club over the years. They were a spectacular team!" She spent quiet a number of years living in the United States of America (USA), where she had to juggle football, academics and adapting to living in a new country. She said the balance of everything comes from being focused. “That’s all I ever did - I focused" she added. Nomvula officially joined the Tshwane University of Technology Ladies football Club in 2020, when asked to share her experience, her response was: “It is hard playing in any new team because you have to do what you are not accustomed to from your previous experience. My teammates, here at home, joke around a lot and we don’t get so serious that we don’t enjoy what we do. It’s fun! You can tell also when we play; South Africans love to do shibobos and not just be business all game. In the States; however, none of that impressed anyone or is even paid attention to. Football is discipline & intellect. That’s it." Having played in both local and international football, the question of what an international player can learn from a local player and vice versa was asked, she said, “an international player can learn about fun from local players. When you’re relaxed, there’s elegance in what you do because elegance requires no effort. A local player, on the other hand, can learn about football intelligence. That is the timing of when to play the simplest football or delve into the complexity of the game by unlocking necessary skills at the right moments.” Footballers create a lot of memories during the games they play and one of her most memorable game as she explains: "it was last year(2019) when we (Banyana Banyana) played against U.S.A in California. I was two weeks shy from my graduation and it was before the Women’s World Cup. You know when they say: ‘something felt different in the air?’ I had that moment. I felt it wasn’t just football. It was an all-round-completion moment of something & I get tears thinking about it because all the Love there is was there. I was sensitive to everything." Nomvula had several number of call ups for the National Team, she explained her experience in the National Team as one that is always amazing. Because not only is she picked to be one of the faces of Women’s Football in the country, but it bears responsibility to bring forth the best she has. Nomi continued to say, “it’s not pap and vleis because everyone else there is just as good. I’ve learned that talent is not duplicated. Also sometimes, it doesn’t even have to do with football, but something else that you have to navigate as you move along. I’m in the process, so I can’t see where I’m going, but I’m not stagnant." While the dream and goal of most female players is to sign a professional contract mostly internationally, but even more to get a National call up, she was asked to give an advise to any female player aiming for that and said: “Look at yourself" ; in short for work on yourself what is yours will find you, you won't ever have to chase after it. In closing, a message of encouragement to all the women in sports from Nomvula is: "go to your most serene place in your mind. Your life’s GPS is there. You may find that after 5 or 9 years of Sports, your soul’s purpose may be to Advocate Gender Based Violence or Unequal Pay. Look around you." May she continue to create memories both on and off the field and keep on adding to her list of achievements through the same hard work, dedication and remaining focused.