Hello fellow Bucs. On this Woza Wednesday it feels right that we pay homage to the rise of the late Senzo Meyiwa. It’s a story of benchwarmer to hero. When I reflect on it, Meyiwa’s story is bittersweet. It’s a story where his love for the club eventually saw him come out on top. Meyiwa arrived at the Parktown at the tender of age 13, when he was scouted out during trials by then goalkeeper coach, Alex Heredia. As we know, Senzo shone out from the rest of the teens. He joined the youth academy and both club and player never looked back. The connection between Senzo and Pirates was unbreakable. It was the titanic of football marriages, and as Meyiwa grew older he continued to knock on the door of first team football. It was in 2007 where he was given his real shot at grabbing a hold of becoming first choice for the Bucs. Owen Da Gama’s introduction on the bench saw Meyiwa handed renewed faith, and he handed him game time after having previously made just one appearance prior to Owen’s arrival. However, further shuffles in coaching staff and the arrival of Moeneeb Josephs back in 2008 meant that Meyiwa had to return back to the bench. He would remain there more often than not, and up until Josephs’ departure last year. Ironically, Meyiwa was at the perfect age to take over. At 26, Nzori was still young enough to claim the jersey and old enough to have a decent amount of experience in his gloves. He was still at the age where improvement in his game was readily available, and he excelled when his chance via Roger De Sa arrived. The current Ajax Cape Town coach improved Meyiwa’s game tremendously. Having previously kept goal during his playing career, Roger and Senzo formed a father-type-relationship which saw both of them lift each other’s game. Meyiwa’s impressive displays helped Roger improve his coaching career, while the tactician played an influential role in advancing Meyiwa’s skills. His heroics on a domestic level and in the CAF Champions League, saw Meyiwa rise to hero status and he was no longer a benchwarmer but a leader, a superman… a captain in his own right. He loved the Bucs shirt and his patience in waiting for his break is a sweet story that will be remembered for a long time. His death, however, was a bitter pill to swallow. He was born a Pirate, he lived like a Pirate, and he died a Pirates. Like your love for the Sea Robbers, the fans love Meyiwa.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 10:28:29 +0000