Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Reneilwe Letsholonyane paid tribute to his midfield partner Siphiwe Tshabalala after being named as the Telkom Knockout Cup midfielder of the tournament on Tuesday afternoon.

Shabba was unable to attend the awards ceremony as he is in mourning following the passing away of his mother on Sunday morning, while offering his condolences to his frined Reneilwe said.

"I would have been happy if Siphiwe was here unfortunately the circumstances do not allow for him to be at the ceremony, our friendship is such that when ever he or I achieve something we celebrate the occasion together.

I offer my hearfelt condolences to Siphiwe and his family on the passing away of his mother, in this time of grief Siphiwe is a a pillar of strength of his family especially his younger sister.”

'Yeye' as he is affectionately known further explained to kaizerchiefs.com that after missing out on last season Telkom Knockout Cup Final as he was away with the Bafana Bafana team preparing for the World Cup he is pleased to have played his part in helping Chiefs win the trophy.

“I am happy to have won this award and to have been part of the team throughout the competition, it was a really fantastic time the team played well and we enjoyed every game.

They were at times challenging games but we came through, I did say before that I wanted to make history and help the team win the tournament twice in one year and I am glad that we have been able to do that.”