Following months on the sidelines after struggling to find a team, Swallows goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi insists he never thought of giving up.

Before joining Swallows during the January transfer window, Akpeyi was on the sidelines without a club after he was deemed surplus to requirements by Kaizer Chiefs at the end of the 2021-22 season.

He repaid the faith shown by the club as he produced some good performances to help them not only beat the relegation but also finish in the top eight in the recently concluded season.

“These things happen, players can be off for a long time. Yes, it can be frustrating, but mentally, one has to be strong and continue preparing because you will never know when your day will come,” Akpeyi explained to Sowetan yesterday.

“So that was my position at that point in time and that was my mentality that things will come alright.”

In eight matches, the 36-year-old kept five clean sheets while conceding five goals. But he refused to take the credit alone, saying it was a team effort as they needed to save the club from facing the chop.

“At some point players realised that the team doesn’t have to go down and the team doesn’t have to struggle like they did in the previous seasons, when they went into the playoffs,” he said.

“Every single player had to step up. Yes I had some good performances and I’m grateful for that because that was really needed to help the team to be in the top eight. So it was a collective effort.”

The Nigerian international also took time to thank Swallows chairman David Mogashoa, who gave him a chance when no team was willing to sign him.

“The chairman gave me that privilege to be part of the team and I had to be grateful to coach Musa [Nyatama], goalkeeper coach Thela [Ngobeni] and all those who are in the coaching department for the support they gave me while I was training with the club.”