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Johannesburg - Orlando Pirates midfielder Sifiso Myeni is gearing up for an emotional reunion with Wits when the two teams meet in Durban on Saturday to contest the Nedbank Cup final at Moses Mabhida Stadium.
Myeni joined the Buccaneers in January 2012, following three successful years with the Clever Boys between 2008 and 2011.
The winger lifted the lucrative trophy in 2010, beating AmaZulu 3-0 in the final at Soccer City a month before the 2010 Fifa World Cup opening ceremony.
“For me, it’s an emotional game. Wits gave me a chance when no-one wanted to give me a chance to play professionally… I was still young,” Myeni said in Johannesburg on Wednesday.
“It’s probably going to be the most emotional game I’ve ever played. I played against Wits when I joined Pirates, but it was not this emotional… getting to the final.”
Saturday’s fixture marks a repeat of the 2011 Telkom Knockout final, where Pirates eased to a 3-1 victory, with Myeni skippering the losing Wits outfit.
“When I was still there (Wits) we won the [Nedbank] cup and the last time, when I was still captain, we played Pirates at the same stadium and we lost 3-1 [in the Telkom Knockout final in 2011],” Myeni added.
“I’m hoping that I will get one or two [goals] on Saturday, but it’s going to be very emotional, playing against my former team. If we win, maybe I’ll score the winning goal and they will say, ‘eish, the boy that we groomed killed us'."
Summing up his thoughts of Wits since his departure in 2012, Myeni believes the Students have come on in leaps and bounds. This was particularly evident over the last two seasons, where the Johannesburg side finished fourth last season, before claiming their best-ever finish to a league campaign by finishing third this season.
“I think Wits have grown a lot, they have new players and the players that I’ve played with there, there are still a few there.
“They have become a team that now compete for everything. Even this season, it’s just a pity that they lost out on the league. I know how much it means for them to win the Nedbank Cup.”
Myeni, who turns 26 next month, said he still had many friends at Wits, including Sibusiso Vilakazi, who was nominated last week for the Footballer of the Season, Nedbank Cup Player of the Tournament, as well as Players’ Player of the Season awards at next weekend’s annual Premier Soccer League awards evening in Johannesburg.
“I even spoke to Sibusiso (Vilakazi) and I told him that ‘I am going to be the only person that stands in your way’,” Myeni joked.
“I know that we are good friends, but on Saturday, there are no friends.”
