Pollen Dumisani Ndlanya had three spells with the Club having joined in the 90s as a teenager. It was on his second spell at the Club having played for Manning Rangers that he established his name at Kaizer Chiefs. He was a hero as the Glamour Boys won the Rothmans Cup back in 1997 after a penalty shootout against Mamelodi Sundowns. He speaks to kaizerchiefs.com about his time with Amakhosi.

My transfer…

I was playing for Mahlubi Mehlomakhulu’s team, United Defenders against Kaizer Chiefs in a curtain raiser for Toyota U-21 in Pretoria in 1991. I was on form on the day and I might have impressed Ryder Mofokeng who was coaching the Kaizer Chiefs U19/reserve side. They spoke to Mahlubi and he took me to Kaizer Chiefs. I trained with Chiefs for a week and signed on the dotted line.

My debut….

It was against Bloemfontein Celtic at Rand Stadium the same year I joined the Club. Fani Madida struggled with a hamstring injury. I came on as a substitute for him. I played upfront partnering with Shane McGregor. I was buzzing on the day and had a few shots on goal. We won the game by 1-0.

I remember going back home to Daveyton and found lots of supporters at home. The game was apparently live on television. The community of Daveyton was proud of me and you can imagine how I felt. Kaizer Chiefs which was one of the biggest teams in the country and I had just played for them. It was one of the proudest moments in my football career.

My favourite game…

It has to be the game we played against Celtic I think back in 1996. I scored a volley there, Marco Van Basten style. I was on song on the day. Sadly, the cameras missed the goal. I never saw it on TV.

My favourite derby…

Rothmans Cup semi final first leg 3-1 over Orlando Pirates at the old FNB Stadium without a doubt! I scored a brace on the day. It was always nice to play in those big games against Orlando Pirates and I was always fired up.

My favourite goal….

The volley against Bloemfontein Celtic has to be my favourite goal.

Toughest Opponent…

All the defenders I played against were tough. If you push me to give you a name I would say Papi Khomane because he was very fast.

The Team I wanted to beat most…

Orlando Pirates!

My best friend or roommate at Chiefs…

Shakes Kungwane! We met when we were both youngsters for Chiefs and we became friends. We are still buddies even today. He is like a brother to me.

My nickname(s)….

(Burst into laughter) ’Trompies’, that was a nickname Kaizer Chiefs fans gave to me. I was also called ‘Congo’ by people who knew me since my days at amateur level.