Injured soccer pro brings hope to the field
"I came home and thought, 'Now what?'. What does an injured soccer player do for a living? I decided to do the thing I loved just as much.
WHITE RIVER – He has his sights set on success and he is only inches away from scoring. However, his dribble down the field of life has been riddled with obstacles.
At 22 years old, Riccardo Da Naya has played soccer on professional level and travelled through numerous countries.
He left home in grade eight to join an academy in Madrid, Spain, for a year. He briefly returned to high school at Uplands but soon realised his destiny was dangling between the goalposts, so he packed his things and crossed the Atlantic to play professional soccer in Europe.
“I competed in trials in the UK but didn’t get in, so I returned to Madrid until I was 16, after which I joined Bolton in Manchester.” Ricardo turned semi-pro when he played for Luton Town FC in the south of London at 17.
This promising young player was well on his way to become a star on the field, but then the unthinkable happened.
A number of serious injuries to both ankles at the age of 18 caused his career to come to a screeching halt. He has a nonchalant attitude when speaking about it, but it is clear that the scars run much deeper.
“I came home and thought, ‘Now what?’. What does an injured soccer player do for a living? I decided to do the thing I loved just as much. I’m fascinated with sound and I’ve always had a love of music, so I studied music production. Before I could complete my honours, I dropped out and moved to the States,” Riccardo says.
In the midst of his professional turmoil another tragedy struck. “When my parents got divorced, I rebelled a bit. I didn’t want to be at home so I spent more time with my friends, most of whom were artists. And yes, we experimented with psychedelic substances every now and then.
“One day, we smoked marijuana and imagined a life where members of the community looked out for one another, and where artists, musicians and photographers could be free to do what they loved. The next day, we practically started our project.”
Today, Nocean Music Collective is an established group spread all across the world, which has made it its mission to produce a platform for aspiring artists to produce and showcase their work.
“We are not an agency. We are just a bunch of friends who want to help other artists out by delivering all the equipment and resources needed to produce, for example, an album. It is still the artist’s own responsibility to create work for him- or herself,” he adds.
Besides the successful music collective, Ricardo started a soccer academy for Uplands Preparatory School, along with his partner Zuki Resha, also an injured soccer star.
Riccardo, or Ricky as his eight-year-old students call him, says the Lowveld Risers Soccer Academy was launched as a means to pay for his music, but has in itself become a way of life.
“I love working with children so I decided to put my talent to good use and train them. However, now there is more meaning to it. I actually enjoy working with children much more than adults.”
For more information on the football academy, like Lowveld Risers on Facebook. Visit the Nocean Music Collective studio at Bagdad Lifestyle centre.
