By Monwabisi Jimlongo
Departed legendary Kaizer Chiefs captain Johannes ‘Ryder’ Mofokeng was a dedicated and committed soldier whose discipline resulted in him becoming one of the best players of his generation.
This is according to former Chiefs midfielder Vusi ‘Computer’ Lamola, who paid tribute to the former Chiefs skipper. Mofokeng passed away last Saturday aged 70.
Phoka as Mofokeng was known played 332 matches for Amakhosi between 1975 and 1985. As a player, Mofokeng played a very important role at Chiefs and was part of the golden generation that brought glory to Amakhosi.
‘‘It’s a very, very sad moment for us as the Kaizer Chiefs camp. We have lost a brother, who was highly committed, most of us played together with him,’’ said Lamola.
‘‘He was our captain. After we have retired he continued being involved in the development structures in terms of ploughing back.That alone says it all in terms of how passionate he was.’’
Chiefs players like Itumeleng Khune, Njabulo Blom and Nkosingiphile Ngcobo were developed by Mofokeng.
‘‘We want to thank God for giving us someone of his calibre. We learnt
quite a number of great things through him. I just thank God that at a later stage Ryder realised the importance of him having a relationship with God. He was strongly connected to God prior to his departure,’’ Lamola said.
During his illustrious career at Chiefs, Mofokeng rubbed shoulders
with the likes of Lamola, Jan ‘Malombo’ Lechaba, the late Patrick ‘Ace’ Ntsoelengoe, Joseph ‘Banks’ Setlhodi and Nelson ‘Teenage’ Dladla just to name a few.
‘‘Ryder was so much committed that we knew that if ever our opponents tried to penetrate our defence they had to go to the left, not the right back where he played,’’ said Lamola.
‘‘We used to make things happen on the field. He was the kind of a player, who enjoyed overlapping as well. Ryder was highly disciplined, he was always punctual. He became our captain mainly because of his discipline.’’
