In this edition of our fixture My First, KickOff catches up with former Orlando Pirates striker Bruce Ramokgadi.
My First School:
"That was at Phuthi Lower Primary School in Dube Soweto, near Gibson Kente's house. I was so confused not knowing what to expect, but I soon settled because most children in that school were from my neighborhood.
"So, it was not so bad. I don't remember the year though."
My First Kiss:
"Yho! Now that's one thing I can't remember [laughs]."
My First Favourite Team:
"Orlando Pirates, but only due to the influence of the family. But they were playing nice football Pirates, to be honest.
"I remember my uncle taking me to the stadium to watch the likes of Zero Mogale, [Patson] 'Sparks' Banda, [Eric] 'Chippa' Chauke and Andrew 'Jesus' Karajinsky.
"And even today, I'm still a Buccaneer."
My First Soccer Boots:
"I never owned a pair of my own, I used to borrow from the other kids. Nobody bought me soccer boots. The first soccer boots I could call my own were the Italia '90. I got them when I joined the Orlando Pirates Reserve team. They were given to me by their then-kit manager."
My First Goal:
"I scored my first goal in 1994 against Tembisa Classic in the BobSave Super Bowl. Classic were still playing in the Second Division back then.
"It was a corner kick, and I was standing inside the small box. Marks Maponyane tried to hit it, but I pushed him out of the way and scored it myself. [Laughs] I couldn't let such an opportunity pass me by.
"There were no hard feelings though after the game. As a teammate who was also a senior, Marks understood, and everybody was happy for me as a youngster."
My First Red Card:
"I got it from former referee Herman Nkuna. It was my second yellow card in that match. We were playing against Moroka Swallows at George Goch.
"Imagine being given your marching orders after coming on as a substitute in the second half.
"Phumlani Dindi was behind me, and I hit him with my elbow. It was not deliberate though, I was protecting the ball. My first yellow card in that match was for time-wasting."
My First Individual Award:
"Unfortunately, those days, such things didn't come easily. Remember, I was competing with top players, and now and then, I started matches from the bench."
My First Trophy With A Club:
"The Iwisa Maize Meal Charity Spectacular in 1995. We beat Mamelodi Sundowns 1-0 in the final. Eddie Motale scored the only goal."
My First Car:
"Jetta CLi. I bought it for R10 000 from someone in my kasi. But it didn't last long, though. I sold it soon afterwards."