A quick Google search of Sharpeville can be quite unsettling because of the old archive footage it brings up. If you’ve looked into the history of the township, you’ve probably seen that grainy black-and-white footage from the notorious Sharpeville massacre.
Jaded-looking police officers appear to be casually talking when suddenly chaos erupts as bullets are fired at peaceful protesters. In those two minutes of madness on 21 March 1960, 69 people were killed for protesting the oppressive ‘Dompass’, low wages, and poor living conditions.
Such is the history of one of the oldest of six townships in the Vaal Triangle, located between two large industrial cities – Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging – in southern Gauteng.
Just three kilometres from the old police station, now known as the Human Rights monument, Motsamai Motsepe stumbled upon a teenage sprint merchant – Tshepang Moremi.
Motsepe runs the Sharpeville Benfica Sports Development Club and had no business marvelling at a youngster seemingly passionate about track-and-field events.
“I met the boy back in 2012, around the month of April, just after schools had finished their athletics season. He held the 100m record at primary school level, aged 11, about to turn 12,” Motsepe tells FARPost.
Mohapi Mofokeng had been working with the youngster for three years when he smashed the 100m record in the inter-district competition. Mofokeng was part of the school development system and worked with kids passionate about sport.
He says that while he would occasionally see Moremi play football during break, his first love was athletics.
“He was eight years old when I first met him, and he was very passionate about athletics. Sometimes during his break time, he would play football,” Mofokeng tells FARPost.
THE TURNING POINT FOR TSHEPANG MOREMI
Perhaps the turning point was when Motsepe saw the same boy running at his opponents on a soccer field across from his school. “I saw the same boy at a ground where we used to train, it’s called the James Ground. The reason it was called the James Ground is that an old man who had a shop that sold refreshments near the ground was shot dead. His name was James,” explains Motsepe.
The Sharpeville Benfica founder was directed to Mofokeng, who had been training Moremi, the athlete. Luckily, it was April 2011, and athletics were over for the year. So, it meant Motsepe could run the rule over the youngster on the football field.
A six-on-six duel was set up. The young boy took his stride onto the football pitch, gliding past opponents as though they were standing. Motsepe, however, admits the teenager was far from the finished article. He was as good as a rough diamond.
“We played six versus six, and he was so fast. He would outrun everyone. In addition to his pace, he could use his left foot so well, but I was told the boy was only interested in athletics,” he remembers.
Fortunately, that six versus six match demonstrated to the school that they had a football talent on their hands. The timing was also ideal, as they were preparing for the Danone Under 12 tournament.
“The boy was so good, his peers called him ‘Buda’ because he was so good,” says Mofokeng. The youngster’s performances had secured him a place at Sharpeville Benfica. Not that he cared about the place. In fact, eight months later, he vanished. He was back on the athletics track.
MOTSAMAI MOTSEPE ENGAGED HIS MOTHER
To gain his newly discovered wing starlet, Motsepe knew the easiest way was to involve his mother. Once he had her permission, there was no disappearing, as he could simply go and look for him at home.
After obtaining his mother’s permission, Motsepe faced another obstacle. The headmaster, aware of his running talent, insisted that he pursue athletics.
“We ended up sitting down with the headmaster and agreeing that I would let him do athletics early in the year and then football when athletics was over. Luckily, his mother, who is a single mother, gave me the responsibility to guide the boy after I explained how talented he was,” explains Motsepe.
After mentoring the boy for four years, he felt the boy had outgrown his Sharpeville side. An academy set up, he thought, would work out well for him.
“When he was 14, I wasted no time; I spoke to his mom and made it clear that I wanted him to go to an academy where he would further develop. I told her I saw a future star in him. I specifically wanted him to go to Gauteng,” adds Motsepe.
Together with the boy and his mom, they took a taxi to Centurion, where the youngster would do trials at Rosina Sedibane Modiba Sport School.
At the Laudium-based Academy, he would also continue with his education. In his matric year, he returned home. Motsepe then arranged with the Remember Elite Sport Academy, where he hoped he would play competitively in the SAB League.
“I sent him to RESE because my last age group at Sharpeville Benfica was Under-17, and he needed to play more competitive football. He did wonders playing in the SAB League,” he says.
MABHUTI KHENYEZA’S ROLE IN MOREMI’S JOURNEY
Motsepe happened to attend a coaching course where he met former Golden Arrows and Kaizer Chiefs striker Mabhuti Khenyeza. He raved on about the boy until Khenyeza, who was with AmaZulu FC at the time, invited him. The next thing he was on a bus to Durban.
“It took two days of assessment for them to be impressed. They had seen potential, and they were signing him for the Diski Challenge team,” he recalls.
In his standout DDC performance, Moremi, nicknamed ‘Continental’, helped Usuthu bounce back from behind to beat Golden Arrows reserves on December 5, 2020. He weighed in with one goal. Four games into his Usuthu DDC stint, Pondo Chiefs came knocking after spotting him during a friendly match.
“I gave that young man a break in professional football,” said former Pondo Chiefs chairman, Nathi Mqokiyana. “Ayanda Mkhize had just scouted him for AmaZulu, and he had played a few games for their DDC side. We played a friendly against AmaZulu’s DDC outside Kings Park.
“I was standing on the sidelines when I saw this explosive young man. Tshepo Motsoeneng and I looked at each other in awe of his talent… We asked to take him on loan, and they gave him to us. That season, he played 23 games, starting at Pondo Chiefs.”
After a season’s loan in the second tier, Usuthu recalled him and unveiled him with several other new signings. Aged 20 at the time, he announced his arrival with a stellar performance in a tie against Golden Arrows, scoring and providing an assist as Usuthu won 3-2 in the Premier Cup.
BENNI MCCARTHY’S IMPACT
He considers himself privileged to have been under the tutelage of South Africa’s only UEFA Champions League winner, Benni McCarthy, who lifted it with Portugal’s FC Porto in 2004.
“He was very important because he promoted me and gave me a chance in the PSL. He took a risk playing him in the CAF Champions League,” Moremi told FARPost in a previous interview.
When releasing Siphiwe Tshabalala that season, McCarthy singled out Moremi as one of the young players he wanted to give playing opportunities. After McCarthy’s departure, Moremi was sent on loan to JDR Stars, where he scored five goals. He returned to Usuthu after a season’s loan and became a vital cog.
After joining Orlando Pirates recently, the 24-year-old said McCarthy is the one legend he admires. According to Transfermarkt, Moremi has 14 goal contributions in 86 appearances. He scored seven and assisted seven times.
He has since vowed to work hard at the Buccaneers and take his game to the next level.
RELATED STORY: AmaZulu confirm agreement with Pirates for Tshepang Moremi