Tau has been roaring from a young age
I hope that Tau’s success will inspire a lot of aspiring footballers – and again, the boy did not only focus on his football, he is also a graduate having juggled between football and education.
If there is one thing about being a sports journalist, and in my case – a soccer journalist, it’s quite fulfilling to see a player growing from a young age to becoming one of the best players in the country and going on to showcase their talent to the world.
I remember my days as a student journalist back at Tshwane University of Pretoria in 2010.
This was my first year at school and luckily for me, I got a chance to shadow one of the journalists at one of the biggest daily papers that side.
During the first week, there was an Under-15 tournament being played at a township called Mamelodi. I immediately got excited to hear that the Mamelodi Sundowns development side will be competing as well.
It was on a Saturday and I prepared myself to go to Mamelodi and met up with my mentor.
Little did I know that on that day I will witness a rising star in this Sundowns development side, a young boy by the name of Percy Tau.
Tau was scoring goals left, right and centre. And I remember he finished the tournament as the top goal-scorer and also walked away with the player of the tournament accolade.
I remember this well because after that, my mentor and I wrote about him sharing a byline and that was the very first time I saw my name published. It was a big deal and for some reason, we continued to talk about Tau and what a player he will become should he continue working hard on his game and being humble. Even the likes of Khayelihle Shozi were also part of that young Sundowns side.
And to be honest, I wasn’t really surprised when I saw Tau breaking into the Sundowns first team, to being loaned to Witbank Spurs, returning to Downs, becoming the best player in the PSL and now, playing in the European Champions League for Belgian side Club Brugge.
Just this past week, I watched as Tau went toe-to-toe with Spanish giants Real Madrid.
And that was one of the best moments ever in my career up to now, to have witnessed the growth of a player from a young age to becoming a world class player.
There are many talented boys like Tau in the country – all it takes is hard work, being humble listening to your coaches and respecting your craft.
I hope that Tau’s success will inspire a lot of aspiring footballers – and again, the boy did not only focus on his football, he is also a graduate having juggled between football and education.
Tau has raised the South African flag high. Keep on roaring and inspiring young talent Percy!
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