Orlando Pirates skipper Innocent Maela has shared a touching story of his life, detailing how he came close to quitting football at some stage when things were just static. 

Maela came through Pirates’ development ranks but breaking into the senior team was a hurdle for him, spending three years in NFD with Thanda Royal Zulu between 2014 and 2017 before going back to stake his claim at the Sea Robbers.

“There was a  time when I thought I couldn’t make it at Pirates.The last season in the NFD, when we won the league... actually the season before that we survived relegation on the last day and I remember having a conversation with my father and he was like, if you guys get relegated to the NFD, then you have to come back home and go back to school,” Maela said when Pirates visited their sponsor Vodacom at their headquarters in Midrand early this week. 

“But luckily, we survived and the following season we won the league and I rejoined Pirates, so I had thoughts of quitting the game because I was stuck in the same division for so long. I thank God and his grace for not allowing me to give up on myself.”

Since returning to Pirates from his loan spell at Thanda, the 30-year-old Maela has managed 117 appearances for the side, representing SA at senior level 12 times in the process. The lad from eMalahleni stands a good chance to be one of Pirates’ most successful captains, having just skippered the Soweto giants to two domestic cups of the MTN8 and the Nedbank Cup in the just ended campaign.

As the club’s development graduate, Maela has suggested the story of him captaining the Buccaneers to two cups is quite motivational. 

“For me to be in this position and when you look into my story, the fact that I joined the academy at a very young age and for me to achieve this feat, it is so special to me,” Maela said.