In this edition of My First, KickOff puts the memory of former Kaizer Chiefs full-back Isaac Mabotsa under the test as we travel way back in time.
The retired footballer shares with readers some of his first experiences in football and life in general.
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My first school:
"My first school was Skeen Primary School in Alexandra. I attended there until I was in Standard 8. As you know, your first day at school is never a memorable one.
"But football quickly gained me a lot of new friends in that school."
My first kiss:
"It was with a girl called Eva. I was in Standard 4. I couldn't sleep that night. The more I thought about it, the harder it was for me to believe [laughs]. Eish, even now I still see her around this neighborhood. That kiss made me feel like a man."
My first favorite team:
"Moroka Swallows, because of my uncle, who is a big Swallows supporter, is the first person to take me to a football stadium. We watched Swallows in Dobsonville; I don't remember against who.
"I switched allegiance later and followed Kaizer Chiefs who at the time couldn't help themselves stop winning."
My first soccer boots:
"I got my first soccer boots at Sheffield United, an amateur team from Alexandra. They were bought by our coach, and even now, he is still involved in soccer. He was the guy who bought me soccer boots, Adidas Argentina. I grew up playing barefoot due to the financial situation at home back then."
My first goal:
"To be honest, I don't have a PSL goal [laughs]. It's only now that I'm playing in the Masters that I'm scoring week in and week out.
"If you check, mostly us defenders only score during set pieces, and because of my height, I was always instructed to stay behind during set plays."
My first red card:
"I can't remember the team we were playing against, but we were in Angola, playing the Mandela Cup.
"To be honest, I kicked the poor guy on purpose. That's how I used to deal with players who were a menace on my side. But I later became matured and learned from those mistakes."
My first individual award:
"It was in the provincial tournament in a team that had the likes of Jabu Pule, Gerald Sibeko, and the late Moffat Mafoka; that's where I got my first award, which was the Player Of The Tournament. That was somewhere between 1997 and 1998.
"At senior team, I was voted the Most Improved Player, Arthur Zwane won the Player of the Season, and they even gave us cars, Nissan Hardbody.
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"But because some people didn't understand that we were only allowed to keep the cars for a year, they kept asking me sorts of silly questions, like: So, you've decided to sell that car Chiefs gave you now?'"
My first cup/trophy:
"That should be the Iwisa Charity Spectacular. Hence I'm saying even though I didn't reach my target, I am still proud of what I've achieved in football. I'm a proud member of Operation Vat Alles."
My first car:
"Golf 3 GTi. They were an in-thing back then, and it's what I could afford. I bought it for R30 000."