It is not often that a youngster graduates from Development Academy to push out a regular player in the first team. But Buti Sithole has emerged as one of the most promising future prospects for the left back position and has already kept regular defender David Kannemeyer out of position.

A former national under-17 and now a regular in the national under-23 side where he made his debut in the African Youth Championships against Madagascar in July 2002 and traveled to Madagascar for the return leg.

He also appeared in the 3-0 win against Zambia in the same competition in October and played 90 minutes in all three matches.

His former development coach Farouk Khan used to jokingly refer to Sithole as a Nigerian or Kenyan international. Far from it, Sithole’s skills would easily compare to those of Nigerians with the Kenyan looks.

Sithole - who has a similar style of play to that of Howard Freeze - is a modern footballer that comes fully developed at junior level with lots to learn in future. He is a hard worker who knows when to run with or hold the ball and when to pass. His timed tackles and great passing ability will surely earn him a permanent place in the starting lineup. The presence of former Development Academy teammates is sure to make it easy for the youngster to acclimatise.

Like many other youngsters, Sithole’s dream of playing for Chiefs started with a long road from the Youth Academy three years ago but hard work and dedication finally paid off when the coach and his technical staff decided the young man was ready for bigger challenges and promoted him in July 2002. He was immediately thrown into the deep end as a second half substitution in place of Kelvin Mushangazhike in the Telkom Charity Cup against Black Leopards at FNB Stadium.

He second game in the black and gold was even tougher, a starting place against rivals Orlando Pirates and the Soweto derby again, at FNB Stadium, which was also his league debut. The youngster had a shaky start like any debutant but as the clock ticked by, he acclimatised well and gave the Pirates arsenal little room the breath, with occasional runs into enemy territory.

"It was nothing out of the ordinary for me to play against Pirates. I was very excited but focused as well,” he recalls. “As the game went on the supporters started cheering with some of my tackles and this motivated me.

Read more in the January issue of Amakhosi magazine