BILLY Ocean sang: When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Moeneeb Josephs has re-written the lyrics. In Josephs's world it seems to be: When the going gets tough, the weak get quitting.

I've never thought of Slim Kat as a wimp. They make them tough in Mitchell's Plain.

In case you've just emerged from under a rock, Orlando Pirates' No1 goalkeeper asked to be dropped from Bafana early in the week. While others dismissed it as a delayed April Fool's joke, it appears Josephs was serious about retiring from international football.

When the Sea Robbers went on a ticker-tape parade to show off their three impressive trophies, Josephs was his usual jovial self, happy to speak to the media. But this changed when SABC soccer journalist Sifiso Ramara interrogated him about his international retirement. Josephs turned his back on the cameras and walked away without saying a word.

For some strange reason, the talking was left to Benni McCarthy - he who has an unsavoury history of countless retirements from the team. McCarthy reportedly said: "Moeneeb is my roommate and he was asking me for my input. I said: 'You are on your own, I don't want to advise you, make your decision, and whatever you decide, I am behind you'. When he explained his reasons, the man just broke down crying.

"I tried to put myself in his shoes, and if I was in his shoes I would have done the same thing. If I feel I am doing more than enough to at least earn a chance to be No1, and I am not being selected as the No1 striker, I would also pull out of the race."

Well, McCarthy is the go-to guy on self-imposed exile from Bafana. He has done it umpteen times to earn the love-hate relationship he has with footy fans.

Does Josephs quitting because he plays second fiddle to Itumeleng Khune mean Senzo Meyiwa must quit Pirates because Josephs is ahead of him in the pecking order?

Perhaps Josephs's actions are influenced by the two fantastic seasons he's had aboard the Bucs ship. Barcelona goalie Victor Valdes has won more trophies than Spain's first-choice Iker Casillas and second-choice Pepe Reina combined in the last four years. But Valdes accepts this is soccer, not golf. It is never about individuals. At 34, Valdes is two years older than Josephs, but he is not moaning about his age. Go figure.

Josephs said in a statement that he wanted to spend more time with his family. How bloody ridiculous! Is this the kind of example Josephs wants to set for his children, that "when the going gets tough, the weak get quitting?"

Reconsider this dom act, Slim Kat.