Banyana heroine Kgoala explains long absence

Banyana Banyana midfielder Nomvula "Lipstick Lady" Kgaola has narrated how she has taken some time off from football to take care of her mental health.

Kgaola is one of the most recognisable faces from Banyana Banyana’s Women’s African Cup of Nations (Wafcon) winning team. Like the rest of the team, she played her part on and off the pitch in Morocco three months ago. The country took her to heart because of her charismatic nature and signature love for lipstick, hence her nickname.

There was an air of uncertainty around her career progression after she was omitted from Banyana coach Desiree Ellis’s squad who faced Australia earlier this month as she was not attached to a club.

On Sunday during the final of the Sasol League National Championships at Peter Mokaba Stadium, she opened up about how life has been lately for her.

“Life has been amazing, spending time with my family and that’s what I’ve been longing for many years, as you know as a professional athlete you travel a lot ... you don’t get time to sit down. I don’t know if players talk about it, I’m taking time to take care of my mental health,” said  Kgaola.

After spending years abroad, studying and playing in the USA and advancing her career at various clubs in Europe, Kgaola felt she needed a break. Many athletes are not known to take mental health breaks, she elaborated on how she arrived at the decision.

“Coming back and going straight to Wafcon was mentally taxing, lots of expectations. I’m not a robot, so after winning the cup, I just decided to slow down a little bit and then I can continue,” she said.

“When I talk about mental health, I’m not saying I wanted to kill myself. You get tired as a person, that’s why there is sick leave, and people go on vacations, I needed that.  I’m so busy all the time playing soccer, one minute I’m in Europe, one minute I’m in Asia, and one minute I’m in South Africa.

“There are many things that go on that people from the outside don’t understand, but as a person I understand myself, I know how I operate, I know when I need a break, I know when I’m having a breakdown, I know when my body says 'no' and when it says 'yes', so I have to listen to it.

Plans of returning to Europe are on Kgaola’s mind. “Going back to Europe, I don’t know. With these things somebody’s got to be interested in you; at this point, as I said, I just decided to take care of me first,” she said.