Kekana opens up on retirement decision

Former Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana says he was drifting away from the game after more than a year without playing, hence the announcement on Tuesday that he was officially retiring.

Kekana left Sundowns in November last year after a decorated stint at Chloorkop, winning six league titles as well as the CAF Champions League in 2016.

Kekana™s professional career began at Black Leopards 17 years ago and he only represented three other clubs after that - SuperSport United, the now defunct Bloemfontein Celtic and Sundowns, which proved to be his final destination. 

But his exit was heavily criticised after he was forced to make room for a younger generation at Chloorkop. Now 37 years old, the ex-midfield anchorman tells SABC Sport that the decision was not taken lightly.

"I've decided to put up the statement this morning simply because I've been out of the game for quite some time now, about a year and a few months so that's too much for a midfielder of my caliber," said Kekana.

"This is not a decision that I took today, it's been on my mind for quite some time and I have been training so hard on my own, trying to maybe trigger some emotion to check if I would miss the pitch again but every day it seems like I'm drifting away from the grass.

"I believe it says I have done enough, I've done the things I've always wanted to do as a kid so I think this is the moment for me to give other kids an opportunity to be professional footballers, and I leave the game I love with so much joy and energy."

By Mazola Molefe