Some
coaches, soccer pundits believe that you need to be blessed with great physique
and pace to turn into a professional footballer, but through the years only one
player has nullified that theory. He has shown that with the right attitude, vision,
discipline, good movement on & off the ball, an eye for goal, above average
first touch and lastly, being a team player can make you the best player in the
country.
Some
call him 'Masterpieces' (after the great Masterpiece Moripe), some call him
'Slow Poison' (because of slow-motion nature), some call him 'Modimo Wa Bolo'
(because of his artistry on the ball), but no matter what name you use, the
fact still remains,he is by far one of the most talented players in the history
of Premier Soccer League (PSL) and is well defined as Surprise Mohlomolleng
Moriri.
Most
of his fellow professionals at his age 32, are at a dwindling stage of their
careers. However, Surprise is still the very same player that we were firstly
introduced to, during the days of the now defunct Silver Stars FC in 2002.He
steered the team to promotion and made a remarkable 51 appearances and scored
19 goals in the process (2002-2004).It did not come as a shock when Mamelodi Sundowns
snatched him and he continued to dazzled the crowd with his skills which made
him the darling among Brazilian fans. In the year 2005/06 season he swept the
PSL awards by winning both the PSL and players player of the year awards
uncontested.
He
has represented Bafana Bafana on 34 occasions and scored 5 goals in the
process. He made his international debut in 2003 against Lesotho and from there
on, he never looked back. In 2009 he missed out on a chance to represent Bafana
Bafana during the Fifa Confederations Cup due to a career threatening injury.
However, he was fortunate to recover on time for the historic Fifa 2010 World
Cup squad and came on in the game against Uruguay. He also made the squad that
played in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations.
His
utility and the rare ability to control the tempo of the game are some of his
strong points. We have seen him play as a striker, attacking midfielder, and
goalkeeper and recently in an unfamiliar territory as a defensive midfielder.
He
is the only surviving member from the team that won back to back league title
and two cups. On the 18th of June 2007, he scored the opening goal in a
friendly match against unarguably the best team in the world, FC Barcelona
which had featured players like Ronaldinho, Deco, Puyol, Samuel Eto'o, etc.
If
you live a clean life, focus on your job and respect the game, then success is
bound to follow and that's what Masterpieces has taught us.
All Hail To King Masterpieces
All Hail!
By Njabulo Siyaya
