A former Orlando Pirates player has at last shared his tumultuous time with the team. With high expectations, Thulani Hlatshwayo left the now-defunct Bidvest Wits to join Pirates as a free agent.
He was a previous captain of a very solid Wits team that had been vying for championships and awards. As a result, he was appointed Bafana Bafana captain by previous coach Stuart Baxter. Hlatshwayo was also a member of the national team that was eliminated from the 2019 Afcon quarterfinals. In doing so, they also took the hosts, Egypt, by surprise. Naturally, there was a lot of enthusiasm when he joined the Pirates after that.
Hlatshwayo was a childhood Buccaneer, thus joining the Pirates was a dream come true for him. He quickly made a name for himself as a regular alongside or under captain Happy Jele. He was also billed as the team’s future captain and Jele’s long-term replacement. Due to the veteran’s ailments, he took over as captain quite fast and had a respectable debut campaign for the team.
Hlatshwayo would, however, start making more mistakes in the second season. Unexpectedly, the devoted Pirates turned their backs on him shortly after. Soon after, the coaching staff followed suit, and at the beginning of the previous season, he was finally let go. It was an anticlimactic conclusion to his ideal move, just like that.
In an interview with KickOff.com, Hlatshwayo discusses his challenging tenure at Pirates.
Hlatshwo Says at Pirates He Fell Out of Love With Football
“Now that I’m back on SuperSport, I’m content. I fell in love with the game again. I lost interest in the game [at Pirates]. I wasn’t having fun. When the team and Ja last played during the COVID [lockdown period], I believe it was against the Chiefs, and neither of them got the desired outcomes. Hlatshwayo said.
After leaving Pirates, he rejoined Gavin Hunt, his former Wits coach, at SuperSport United. Hlatshwayo has been assigned a crucial job there, allowing him to occasionally don the armband.
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