 |
| Patrick Phungwayo © Backpagepix |
Defender Patrick Phungwayo has expressed his sheer pleasure after reaching a century of matches.
Phungwayo, who turned professional in 2008 while at Bidvest Wits, celebrated an impressive milestone on Friday night when he played in the 100th game of his career in Pirates’ 2-1 victory over Abafana Bes’thende at Orlando Stadium.
“I have never felt so happy before because not too many players have had the opportunity of playing 100 games in the top-flight,” said the 24-year old.
“Getting here has not been easy, there were tough times where I had to be strong and keep my head up. I was very young when I started playing professional football and there were great players in my position but the one thing that kept me going was my will to do well and my never-say-die attitude.”
Before the match against Arrows, Orlandopiratesfc.com asked Phungwayo how he would like to celebrate his milestone and he said:
“I would love to celebrate it in the best possible way and that is to beat Golden Arrows.”
The Buccaneers did just that albeit after an early scare when the visitors took an early lead ( 18th minute) courtesy of a strike from Bongi Ntuli.
Rallied on by the home support, Pirates restored parity on the stroke of half-time from a Thulasizwe Mbuyane header and then took the lead thanks to a superb strike from Tlou Segolela in the second half.
Meanwhile, Phungwayo edges closer to recording his 100th start in the Premier Soccer League. The diminutive full-back currently sits on 98 PSL starts and 4 appearances as a substitute.
Career Stats*
2008/09
Club: Bidvest Wits
Starts: 16
Sub: 1
2009/10
Club: Bidvest Wits
Starts: 32
Sub: 1
2010/11
Club: Panionios (Greece, loan)
Starts: 2
Club: Bidvest Wits
Starts: 17
2011/12
Club: Bidvest Wits
Starts: 32
Sub: 1
2012/13
Club: Orlando Pirates
Starts: 1
Sub: 1
*League and Cup matches only
Source: www.orlandopiratesfc.com
|
