‘Orlando Pirates Zulu-speaking supporters cursed me on debut’

Former Orlando Pirates forward Thulasizwe “Juju-Man” Mbuyane has relived his debut for the club back in 2008.

The retired striker made a big move from Free State Stars to Pirates in 2008 under Dutch coach Ruud Krol. Speaking on the Trap and Pass podcast, Mbuyane said he signed for a fee of R2.8 million.

“When i signed for Orlando Pirates, I was earning R34 000. When I arrived, there was still the Telkom Charity Cup. They said if we win it, we won’t win the league, it was like a superstition or curse. After the Telkom, it was the SA Super 8, my first game for Pirates was during the Super 8 against SuperSport United.”

“The nerves were there but because I already played a few games during the pre-season, I was fine after a few minutes,” he said.

Despite being a fan favourite at Orlando Pirates, Mbuyane did not impress fans in his first game.

“I missed a sitter, and immediately after the ball went to their side and Teferra Fikru scored with a bicycle kick and SuperSport won 2-1. I was stressed after the match because we lost.”

Mbuyane won six trophies with Orlando Pirates

“Ruud Krol wanted us to analyse the game the next Monday. When we were rewatching the match in the auditorium, I could hear the Orlando Pirates Zulu speaking supporters swearing and cursing at me for missing that goal. ‘Who is he…where does he come from’, the supporters shouted as I watched the rematch. Everyone in the auditorium watched and laughed.”

The Juju-man spent six years at Orlando Pirates winning six trophies including two league titles.

How good was Juju at Pirates?

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