Skhumbuso grew up without his mother and father in Kwanyuswa. His grandmother was his primary caretaker. When he moved to Shongweni in grade 9, he reconnected with his mother, trying to mend their relationship. Even so, he had so much built-up anger towards his father that he began to get into trouble around the township. It wasn’t until 2014 that he would tell you his life truly began. That’s when he started to understand what it meant to live.
He began playing soccer at a church in 2017. He had never gone to church before, and he didn’t have any intention of starting. Soccer was the only thing on his mind. But when he injured his knee, his soccer career came to an end, and he needed to find something else to occupy his time. He wanted to find a way to care for the boys in his community– a chance to give them what he never had.
“When I was growing up, no one cared about us,” Skhumbuso said.
So he went to his pastor with a dream to build a soccer team for the boys in the township. They could be any age, with any experience, he just wanted to create a safe space where boys could leave their worries and troubles behind for two hours every day. The team started with 13 boys. Now more than 100 boys (plus two girls) play for Skhumbuzo.
He found that as a coach, he wanted to do more than just teach his young players the game of soccer. He had watched Manchester United create foundation camps for young players to educate, improve confidence, and learn new skills. He wanted to implement those same things into his team.
Many of the parents in Shongweni didn’t think their young boys could play soccer, but Skhumbuso had a passion to do things differently– to change the game.
“I wanted to change the way people think,” Skhumbuso said.
He remembered growing up playing soccer using plastic balls. He didn’t want the same thing for his boys.
His team is more than soccer. Ultimately, he wants his players to understand love: how to love others, and how to love God. Skhumbuso works hard to create relationships with his players that will last after they leave the team.
“They have lots of wounds in their hearts,” Skhumbuso said. “I’m trying to show them that they can heal.”
Many of the children in Shongweni are raised by single mothers. They don’t understand what it means to be a man because no one has ever cared enough to show them. Skhumbuso wants to teach his boys that they can survive with a father, a mother, or someone who supports them. But he hopes he can step into that role for them.
For 23-year-old Ayanda, coach Skhumbuso became his father figure. Growing up in a community where drugs and alcohol are prevalent issues for young men his age, he believes that soccer gave him a way out. It changed his life.
“[Now] when someone on the team is struggling, I can help them because coach helped me,” Ayanda said.
In a little house sitting on a hill behind the soccer field, an older woman sits watching the team practice everyday. They call her “Kulu” which means grandmother in Zulu.
“She’s our number one supporter,” Skhumbuso said.
In 2020, the assistant women's coach, Mohdumiso Shozi, passed away due to illness. It was a rough season for the team, and Skhumbuso almost gave up everything. Many girls quit the team and went on to get pregnant. Boys also left the team, and they started losing games. But Kulu helped them through it; she gave them hope. She opened her home to the team, providing a place to talk and get food. And to this day, she still watches over them, proving that they are more than a soccer team.
Skhumbuso recognizes that it’s hard for the players to understand each other because they come from different backgrounds. He hopes that while they play soccer, they can learn how to communicate with each other and build each other up. He’s teaching them that words have power.
“They have shaped my life,” Skhumbuso said. “And they trust me because they believe in me.”
Two players out of 100 are girls. In the community, it's uncommon for girls to have a desire to play sports. Most of the time, they are busy with metric or helping with household chores– soccer is not a priority.
For 22-year-old Nomacebiso, soccer is everything.
Outside of soccer, Nomacebiso keeps to herself, staying at home getting her chores done. But when she comes to practice, she plays with passion, hoping that coach will put her in.
She lives with her mother, father, eight siblings, and two nieces. Her father works throughout the week but comes home to be with the family on the weekends. She’s so grateful for her family and the ways they have supported her to play soccer.
The team has impacted her in more ways than she can count. She’s grown in her spiritual life because of Skhumbuso, and she loves going to church with the other players. Since playing with the boys, she’s learned how men should treat women. A lesson that isn’t always taught in the community.
And it doesn’t faze her to play with all boys, just so long as she can play.
Skhumbuso has learned from each of them just as much as they have learned from him. When Skhumbuso first started going to church, he remembered having so many questions about God, and he never had a place to go to talk about it. He hopes to continue to create a space for them to ask questions, especially when it comes to their faith. He’s thankful for the opportunity to be their coach; they are his family.
“I am who I am because of them,” Skhumbuso said.