Former Kaizer Chiefs striker Pollen Ndlanya has shared a fascinating account of the divine intervention that launched his professional career, explaining how a chance training session against Lucas Radebe transformed him from a trialist with a plastic bag into a first-team star.
Ndlanya joined Chiefs in the early 1990s with the big ask of competing with Fani Madida and Shane McGregor. After struggling for regular minutes, he later moved to Manning Rangers. It was where he made his name as a consistent goalscorer. By the time he returned to Naturena in the mid-1990s, he was a different striker.
His second spell at Amakhosi earned him legendary status, including a memorable four-goal performance against Witbank Aces in 1996. The quality eventually opened the door to a move abroad, where he featured for Turkish clubs Göztepe and Bursaspor.
Recalling his unlikely introduction to life at Chiefs, Ndlanya explained how a chance performance changed everything.
“I was scouted from Higlanders in Daveyton,” Ndlanya recalled on Izinja Ze Game. “I scored two goals in a 3-2 loss against the Chiefs reserve team. A few days later, I got the call. They told me the Chiefs reserve team wanted me. Ryder Mofokeng was the coach, and he wanted to sign me. I obviously could not believe it.
“I was invited to go train with the reserve team in Soweto. The arrangement was to first meet at George Goch Stadium, where the senior team trained, then from there, we were going to travel to Soweto, where the reserve team trained. We were meeting at 14:00 before the training at 16:00. I was carrying my boots in a small plastic bag. They called it Checkers [laughs].
STAR-STRUCK BY KAIZER CHIEFS PLAYERS
“I was sitting in the grandstand at George Goch when the senior team arrived. All the big stars I was watching on TV. Guys like Rudolph Seale, Doctor Khumalo, Trevor ‘KKK’ Mthimkhulu, those big stars, the likes of Shane McGregor, wearing Chiefs’ Kappa merchandise, but I was thinking about the trip I was going to make to train with the reserve team in Soweto.
“Ryder Mofokeng came and told me it was too late to go to Soweto. He asked me to train with the senior team instead. The fear started. I was shaking so much. I was honestly so nervous. While I was in the changing room, Wellington ‘Umunt’ Akalahlwa’ Manyathi came in, and he was so sweet and down to earth. He told me to relax and just do my thing.
“So we started training… we played an 11 vs 11 game between the starting team and squad players. Since Chiefs spotted me playing as an attacking midfielder, I was there to do my trials as that. But the squad team that day had players in those positions like [Isaac] ‘Shakes’ Khungwane and [Johannes] ‘Chippa’ Molatedi. So they asked me to go play upfront.
“I came up against Lucas [Radebe]. To be honest, I gave him problems. I remind him every time I see him. ‘You can ask ‘Luci.’ I was turning him nonstop and scoring.
“During a water break, coach Jeff Butler came to me, and he asked where I was from. He patted my cheek, saying I was a damn good player. Later, his assistants came to me to say I must come to the office to sign for the first team. And the rest was history. You know God does wonders,” Ndlanya added.
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