It is a rare occurrence when brothers are signed by the same football club. It is more rare to find them playing for the same team simultaneously.
Brothers Okwudeli (24) and Onyemaechi Godwill Atu (20) are both Jomo Cosmos FC soccer players. They shared their story of playing professional soccer.
The pair are of Igbo and Swati decent and were born and raised in Germiston.
“We see Germiston as home, our hearts have a love this town,” they said.
The brothers attended day care at Sinbad then progressed to Germiston South Primary School and matriculated from Germiston High School.
Godwill said the first development team to sign and develop them was Germiston City FC. Okwudeli is a goalkeeper and Godwill plays centre back.
The brothers said they grew up in the same circle of friends from day care and soccer was the most important thing for them all.
“Due to the easy access to the Germiston Stadium and the sports club every boy from Germiston dreams of playing soccer,” explained Godwill.
During the pandemic, the soccer players said they were reminded of how beautiful their home town is.
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“We got to stroll through the town we grew up in and reminisce on some of the experiences we shared, before reaching the Germiston Stadium.”
The older brother added what he loves the most about Germiston City has to be the facilities, which are open to the public and not only the sport clubs.
“We did a lot of our extra training there,” said Okwudeli.
Okwudeli detailed how his love for soccer was birthed.
“We spent a lot of our holidays and weekends at Mgathi, Katlehong. That is our second home, where our mother’s family is based. I watched as my peers played soccer and when I was nine-years-old, they came over and asked to borrow my ball. They ended up stealing it. I chased them just to find them giving it to senior boys of our community who were playing a street tournament.”
To Okwudeli’s surprise, the likes of Thela Ngobeni were involved in the street tournaments.
“At the time, Thela was still a Kaizer Chiefs development player and I saw how good he was. The community came out in numbers to support them and it was in that moment when I knew I was going to be a soccer player,” said the goalkeeper.
Godwill spent a lot of time with his older brother.
“All my brother did was play soccer and he would tell me it is what he wants to do. He also told me I could play with his peers even though I was five years younger. I then grew a passion for the game.”
The older brother was scouted by South African soccer legend Jomo Sono four years ago.
“A few months after my first elimination from Nedbank Ke Yona, Jomo called me after the game and invited me to start training with his team. I signed my first professional contract with them in August.”
Okwudeli said one should be patient when it comes to fulfilling your dreams.
His brother said he was promoted to the first team from the Jomo Cosmos FC development structure at 17 years.Godwill said he has been with the team for three years, while Okwudeli has been with the team for two months.
They both agreed that wearing the Jomo Cosmos jersey was the best way to kickstart their careers.
The soccer brothers shared five tips to succeed in playing professional soccer:
• Support each other.
• It happens at different times and stages for everybody, your own time will come.
• Stay prepared, opportunities always come.
• Pray and fast often, God holds the key.
• Move in the right circle of people.
