“Shaka Ngcobo ranks as one of the best wingers South Africa ever had,” says Kaizer Chiefs Chairman Kaizer Motaung describing the Amakhosi legend, who passed away on Saturday. “He was also one of the fastest ever. Shaka was strong and he could use both feet. Amazingly, when he was on the ball, you would never know if he was right- or left-footed.”

Abednigo ‘Shaka’ Ngcobo grew up in Umlazi. That’s where the winger, who could also play as a striker, was first spotted when Chiefs played in this township against a locally recruited Invitation XI in 1972. This was back in the days when clubs would play twice in a weekend, on Saturdays and Sundays.

“I wasn’t there on the Saturday,” the Amakhosi Chairman reflects. “It was a friendly match and we fielded a weakened side. Shaka scored six goals. The late Ewert ‘The Lip’ Nene never wasted time when he spotted a good talent and certainly not after an opponent netted six times, which obviously made the eyes pop out. Needless to say, Shaka was quickly signed.

“When he came to Chiefs, Shaka was still a very raw talent. He was lightning quick, but he would sometimes overrun the ball. We worked on polishing the finer points of his game. Shaka became an outstanding player, who, for example, was selected as the 1979 Football of the Year.

“Shaka was very shy in the beginning. By nature he was not a person who talked too much. He was a very kind and humble person. I played for Denver Dynamos with Ace Ntsoelengoe and Shaka in 1975. We lived in the same neighbourhood and spent quite a lot of time together. Shaka would tell Ace and me all kinds of amazing stories from Durban.”

Kaizer Chiefs and Hellenic faced each other in the 1975 Chevrolet Champions of Champions final, a multinational tournament. Hellenic was a white team (having only white players), while the Amakhosi were black. The Cape Town-based team won the first match 4-0. Chiefs, however, won the return match 2-1, thanks to goals from Motaung and Ngcobo. It was the first time that a ‘black’ team beat a ‘white’ team. The Chiefs Chairman adds: “Ngcobo was brilliant on the day.”

Shaka Ngcobo also played for a while in Uruguay for Penarol, earning him another nickname, ‘Valdez’.

He retired in 1984, while still playing for Kaizer Chiefs. “If Bafana had a winger like Shaka,” concludes Motaung. “That could make a huge difference. Shaka was something special!”

The Ngcobo family announced that Shaka’s funeral will be held from 10am at the Umlazi Cinema, Umlazi, on Saturday, 8 November.