Albertsdal footballer adapts to the new norm

With the country slightly easing to new lockdown changes, this means the game can keep going if footballers adhere to different regulations.

Midfielder Tebogo Tlolane who joined Maritzburg United on loan early in the year and whose parent team is Orlando Pirates has familiarised himself to the new normal. After being confined indoors for the past few months, the 25-year-old talented soccer player has finally gotten back in the pitch.

This is after the Premier Soccer League’s board decided to resume the Premiership and National First Division (NFD) seasons on August 8 and end them on September 5. In an exclusive interview with the RECORD, Tlolane described the new normal to being the toughest time following months of being confined behind closed doors.

“It was very difficult because when we finally got back to training, we got called back a bit earlier. Training officially kicked off towards end of July and after having to be at home and train from home it was very difficult,” he said.

New rules

He said upon their return they had to adhere to training in fewer numbers, avoid physical contact, maintain social distancing and use the same chair daily.

“It was a bit scary at first because we started off by training in groups of five, then 10 and eventually it was the whole squad. We also needed to park our cars metres away from each other. Before every game we had to be there two hours before in order to allow few regulations,” he said.

He stated that not having spectators around when playing games was a great concern and that it contributed negatively to the success of each game.

“Before you play a lot goes through your mind such as how the game is going to be. When you don’t have supporters watching you in the game, the energy that you normally get from spectators now has to come from within,” said Tlolane.

He strongly expressed his concerns over regulations that were put in place as per the new normal.

“Football is a contact sport and one makes contact with teammates often, but you will always need to be cautious and vigilant. The changes became second nature to us and we got familiar to what we were supposed to do. As a team, we pulled through well and supported each other throughout,” he said.

Getting used to change

According to Tlolane, the new normal was complemented by endless Covid-19 testing and new regulations which were put in place in order to curb the virus.

“You get used to this new way of doing things, and this is something that needed to be done in order for us to be safe. For many of us, the pandemic hit hard since some of our families tested positive. It was a time frame where one needed to have a lot of faith in prayer,” he said.

He strongly advised people to be vigilant and keep in mind that the coronavirus pandemic still existed despite easing of lockdown regulations.