Having reached the milestone of 100 caps playing for AmaTuks, Frank Mpedi can rightfully claim to have been there, done that and got the T-shirt to prove it, but he is not.
To him, there is still that one outstanding goal. That is to help AmaTuks qualify to play Premier League Football.
“It will be a dream come true if we manage to do so,”‘ said Mpedi, who debuted for AmaTuks in 2018. He has played Varsity football for Tuks since 2014. A definite highlight was being part of the Tuks team who won in 2017.
Last year was bittersweet for Mpedi. AmaTuks finished second on the log standings of the GladAfrica League. So they got to contest to qualify for the Premier League. AmaTuks only needed a draw in their last game but lost.
“Although not qualifying was heart-rendering, there were some positives from our campaign. I know now that AmaTuks has what it takes to the next level. All it will take is self-belief, hard work and discipline from every player,” Mpedi said.
AmaTuks finished 8th on the log this season. Mpedi is honest in his assessment of their performance.
“As far as I am concerned, we have failed as a team. There are definite things we need to improve on. If there was one thing that has put us on the back foot, it is losing eight of our regular players from last year. They got signed to play in the Premier League. The youngsters needed time to adjust to playing at a higher level. Unfortunately, with the high stakes, there was no time for them to do so. Every team wants to qualify to play in the Premier League. So there is hardly ever an easy game.”
Football is genuinely Mpedi’s passion. When he is not playing or training, he is watching football games. On the day of the interview, he was planning to go watch Mamelodi Sundowns play.