Where are they now: Ernest 'Botsotso' Makhanya

Ernest "Botsotso" Makhanya's chidhood love of boxing almost robbed South Africa of the chance to witness the mercurial skills of the former Bucs star.

But persistent calls by members of the Dlamini community in Soweto persuaded Makhanya to change his mind and gave fans the opportunity to enjoy a glorious football career.

"I started boxing at the Chiawelo Centre because, as a boy, you don't know where your talent lies," Makhanya recalls. "During the week I went to boxing training but over weekends, especially on Sundays, I joined other boys and played soccer at our local grounds."

While he was playing for Dlamini All Stars, people remarked how good he was. At 12 he was recruited to Dlamini Super Spurs under-14s and when people continued to sing his praises, he ditched boxing.

A pupil at Senaoana Senior Secondary, he joined Orlando Pirates when he was 20 and was an instant hit with the fans.

"This was a great moment in my life because it had been my wish as a young boy to join the ranks of national heroes and well-known footballers. It was a dream come true, even though I was a Moroka Swallows fan at the time," he says.

A bit scrawny, Makhanya relied more on his skills than his strength. He made up for his lack of pace with quick passing and clever movement off the ball.

Makhanya played alongside Eric "Chippa" Chauke, Jackie Ledwaba, Bashin Mahlangu and Basil "Kaapse Dans" Steenkamp, and their brand of football had many opposition sides in awe. They won the Castle Challenge in 1987 and the 1988 BobSave Superbowl, beating Kaizer Chiefs in the final.

"I never undermined the opposition and respected everybody we played against," says Makhanya. "This explains why I was always in top form. I had the will to win and enjoyed playing with anybody who was competitive and I suppose this gave me the edge."

When his stay at Pirates came to an end after a decade, he began the life of a drifter as he gradually gravitated towards coaching. His first stop was at Umtata Bucks, followed by a move to Seven Stars, where he was coached by Gavin Hunt, who had played against him when he was at Hellenic.

His coaching career began with a second division club, Black Bees, in 1998. A couple of years later he returned to Pirates, where he was employed as a development coach.

Makhanya's next stop was at a KwaZulu-Natal club, Sicilian, in the Vodacom League in 2008, followed by a stint with Sheshego Naughty Boys in Polokwane.

Makhanya is now back in Johannesburg, where he's one of three community coaches working with children from shelters in Hillbrow. The initiative is a joint venture between the Dutch government and Soccer Legacy Africa, a non-profit organisation started by retired SA players.

"It gives me challenges," he says. "You get different kinds of kids from diverging backgrounds. Some of these kids have parents and have moved into shelters because they want to be independent.

"Part of our responsibility is to place them with clubs if they show interest. In that way we will have improved their lives of by giving them a career to look forward to."

Makhanya is critical of the way football is run in SA, saying: "Club owners who have money don't understand the game and want to tell you as coach what to do. Owners interfere in areas where they should let the coach do his job. That is why we won't improve.

"Fans also make it worse by putting pressure on coaches and players. I have to be left alone to deal with the tactical aspects of the game.

"We need to be more positive despite the problems we have. People also keep making the point that our standards were higher. This is because we had passion. It was not about the money. Football was meant for entertaining people. The kind of football we played was slower. Now the game is too quick for it to be entertaining and for players to think properly. It has become big business. There are no more thinkers in the game."

He adds that children are exposed to negative influences such as drugs and alcohol. "There are so many things that are a distraction. We played during segregation and football was our only sport - now it has to compete with rugby, cricket and PlayStation.

"We have lost our culture. There is talent in Africa but we need to instil discipline and a serious work ethic, because you can't rely on talent alone."