Legendary goalkeeper exchanges his soccer boots for Holy Bible

One of the best goalkeepers to have been produced in the former Venda Homeland, Rofhiwa “Rubberman” Ndambakuwa, has exchanged his soccer boots for the Holy Bible. The former goalkeeper of the once infamous ISD Thohoyandou founded the Maanda a kha Mudzimu Church at Thenzheni village, where he also serves as pastor.

Ndambakuwa is the eldest son of the late Bishop Enos Muthuhadini Ndambakuwa, who was a resident of Muhuyu village. He made a name for himself in the football fraternity playing for ISD Thohoyandou FC in the late 1980s. He was the only goalkeeper who never conceded a goal against local lethal strikers in the mould of Emanuel Davhana, Christopher Mahandana, and Muraga Mufamadi. Failing to score against Ndambakuwa on several occasions, Muraga Mufamadi later joined him at ISD Thohoyandou FC. For Ndambakuwa, 1987 was his best year between the posts.

The prolific goalkeeper was considered one of the best-disciplined players in his team and the then Venda Football Association (VEFA). Perhaps that was already a sign that he was destined to become a man of God in the future. “Throughout my entire soccer career, spanning more than 15 years, l never received a yellow card. As a team, we believed in marking a star player out of the game, not kicking him out of the field, so our defenders never protected me by kicking strikers but marked them well, knowing that there is ‘Rubberman’ between the poles,” he said.

Because of his dedication to his education, he refused a golden opportunity to play in the professional ranks. “In 1989, while I was studying at the University of the North (formerly known as the University of Turfloop), I was approached by the late Ted Dimitru, who wanted me to join Sharp Blackpool, but l turned him down because I was focused on my education at Turfy. Sharp Blackpool was based in Johannesburg. I would have played alongside Fani Madida, Jury Bantwana, Gavin Lane, the late Shoes Moshoeu and Jerry Sikhosana, to mention only a few,” he said.

In 1989, he was also selected to play for the then Venda National Football Team, alongside his younger brother, Chester Ndambakuwa.

When asked who had inspired him to become a goalkeeper, he said he was a big fan of the late Sibasa Fast XI goalkeeper, Thembi Muleya. “He was a great goalkeeper and he really inspired me to be a goalkeeper,” he said.

Ndambakuwa is also credited to have discovered and trained another former ISD Thohoyandou FC goalkeeper, Donald Themeli, who went on to play for Platinum Stars in the PSL.

Date:17 December 2023

By: Victor Mukwevho

Victor Mukwevho Ne-vumbani joined the Mirror during it's inception in 1990. He joined the SABC newsroom in 1995, and was known by  listeners as "A u fhedzisela ari". He was a news editor for The Tembisan Newspaper from 2007 to 2015. He rejoined the Limpopo Mirror newspaper in June 2022 as a freelance journalist.

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