Home is where heart is for Kgatla
Veteran midfielder Stanley Kgatla feels at home at Highlands Park where he started his professional career.
|||ABSA Premiership newcomers Highlands Park will be out to make an impression this season.
However, at 32, veteran midfielder Stanley Kgatla, has lost a yard of pace and he understands he is no longer that energetic central midfielder who used to win tackles and spray defence-splitting passes from the middle of the park.
Kgatla believes a number of youngsters in the team will be out to make a name for themselves in the elite league.
“I have nothing to prove in the PSL,” says the former Platinum Stars, AmaZulu and Mpumalanga Black Aces player.
“The youngsters will want to show their mettle which is good for the team.”
Before joining Highlands Park in the National First Division (NFD), Kgatla spent close to 10 years in the PSL, turning out for the better part of his career for Stars, a side he captained for several seasons.
The man from Tzaneen was one of the experienced players who helped Highlands Park make it to the PSL.
Jermaine Christian, Rudi Isaacs, and goalkeeper Tapiwa Kapini played a key role for the Lions of the North as well. For Kgatla, though, joining Highlands Park a few season ago proved to be a great move.
Kgatla says he has had to make some adjustments.
“I had to adjust. I told myself I am no longer in the PSL but in the NFD,” said Kgatla.
“When I left Aces, there were no offers for my services. I went to Highlands and now we are promoted.
“It’s a good thing. I am happy about it. I am in the PSL again. It’s something I saw coming.
“I could tell it was our season the way the guys were motivated and determined from the first match. I was confident. Even when Baroka FC got automatic promotion, I knew we would join them in the elite league,” he said.
Kgatla, who played twice for Bafana, knows that finding regular time in the PSL, where the game is played at high intensity, will be a daunting task.
Kgatla believes youthful exuberance will carry Allan Freese’s side next season.
“They bolster the team. The boys we have are good players. They are hungry for success. They would be playing to make an impact. They want to prove a point.
“We are in the PSL for the long haul. We have a very good team,” said the central midfielder.
Though Kgatla has nothing to prove, there’s a piece of silverware he wants to get his hands on.
Having led Stars to the Telkom Knockout in 2008, he is hankering for the PSL championship.
“I want to win the league. I won a cup and I also played in CAF, though I didn’t win anything. The only thing missing for me is the league. As a player or a coach, I must win the league.
“Highlands are going to win the league.
“Not now but in three years we would be capable of winning the league,” said Kgatla, nephew of former Bafana defender Andrew Rabutla.
Kgatla appears to be a contented man. He feels at home at Highlands Park, where he ironically started his professional football career.
When Kgatla returned to Highlands Park, he was welcomed by chairman Larry Brookstone, who told him the club was his home.
“When I went to talk to our boss Larry at Highlands, the first thing he told me was ‘look, you signed your first professional contract here and the last contract, you are going to sign here’.
“He said I belong to Highlands Park.”
– THE SUNDAY INDEPENDENT