In this edition of How I Became A Goalkeeper, KickOff speaks to the University of Pretoria FC goalkeeper Ayanda Dlamini.
Dlamini who started his football career as a striker, reveals how he ended up playing goalkeeper.
I'm sure you have an interesting story to tell about how you became a goalkeeper:
"I started at a young age, but as an outfield player, not as a goalkeeper; I played as a striker and a defender," Dlamini tells KickOff.
"I used to play alongside my older brother in the Under-12s of Seven Action in Madadeni, which still exists even today and is coached by Mncedisi Mazibuko.
"But because the team didn't have divisions like Under 15 or 17, we decided to form our team for our age group.
"But we didn't have the playing kit, we put our heads together, we had to come up with an idea, we had to get some sort of a uniform and very fast.
"The final decision was, each player must bring his own old white school shirt. We played in those shirts for quite a while, that was until some gentleman approached us, asked to be our chairman, and offered to buy us a kit.
"That time, the team didn't even have a name, so on top of our heads, we just decided to call ourselves School United. He registered us with the local league. We were now playing in the Under-19.
"But now the problem is our usual games were starting to play hard to get; he was no longer interested in playing; he was no longer serious about his football. We would look for him and we wouldn't find him.
"So I decided to volunteer to be in goals, that's how I became a goalkeeper, from Under-19."
Which other goalkeepers were you following during your time back then?
"Wayne Sandilands, who was very calm, Itumeleng Khune, Senzo Meyiwa, they were still young and liked diving for the easiest balls even. You could see they enjoyed what they were doing."
Currently, who is your favorite goalkeeper?
"For now, it's me; yes, when other teams are playing, I do watch them and try to learn both good things and bad things because, as a goalkeeper, you learn every day."