Happy Jele has broken his silence on reaching a special milestone for Orlando Pirates in the original Soweto derby on Saturday.
Happy Jele has broken his silence on reaching a special milestone for Orlando Pirates in the original Soweto derby on Saturday.
Jele became the first Buccaneers player to reach 400 appearances for the club Premier Soccer League era on Saturday afternoon.
The 34-year-old capped the special ocassion by bagging the Man of the Match award as Pirates claimed a 1-0 win over Swallows FC on Saturday evening.
"It's a special day for me, it was not an easy journey, to play 400 games in one team, it's tough! But through thick and thin, I managed to cope.
"There was a time when I got injured and people wrote me off but because God is there, he's always with me, I worked so hard and came back," he said.
"I'd like to thank the team as well especially for keeping me for such a long time, I'm prepared to work more harder for the team, try to win more games and more trophies for the team."
Jele was asked how he felt, when before the game Swallows players joined him taking pictures with his framed 400 appearances jersey.
"It was emotional for me, I wanted to cry but if I cry I won't play very well, so I started to be focused because we had to play the game," he said.
"It's a special day for me, I'd like to thank Swallows as well the way they responded in terms of the gesture I got and I'm happy. To all supporters as well, thank you for the support you've given me. From the supporters to the family and friend, I'd like to thank them."
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