On a normal Thursday at AmaZulu FC, players would be preparing to head out to training.
But on this one, they gathered at the African Congregational Church in Cliffdale, Durban to say goodbye to one of their own.
This is where the family and friends of the AmaZulu FC striker Bonginkosi Ntuli gathered to bid the last farewell to the newlywed, who passed away in Pietermaritzburg after a short battle with an aggressive cancer.
He died just two months after tying the knot with AmaZulu CEO Snenjabulo Zungu.
His memorial service was held at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Wednesday and the funeral followed the day after. Speaking to Drum, one of Bonginkosi’s friends and neighbours, Tha Simelane says both the memorial and funeral service went well.
“People came out in numbers to show their last respect to Bongi. It was very emotional, I knew Bongi when he was still playing for Golden Arrows. But we became close when he started to play for AmaZulu, and he was also my neighbour. We saw each other almost every day and on the weekend of the Rugby Final where South Africa beat New Zealand, he was at my house.”
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He says Bongi was not sick but complained about having chest pains and he didn’t know that he had cancer.
“We were very close for the past three years, he introduced me to other players. And the most painful thing is that he was a newlywed, on the day that he died it was supposed to be his traditional wedding ceremony. It is difficult to speak about his death because no one deserves to go through this, especially his wife. They were supposed to be enjoying their wedding, no one should die on their wedding day.”
The funeral service MCed by Siya Mhlongo was an intimate ceremony, Major Xolani Zungu of the Salvation Army opened the ceremony with a prayer.
The first speaker was Ayanda Jali, who was speaking on behalf of friends and said Bonginkosi was like his brother and it felt like they came from the same womb.
He says he was present in everything that the late striker was part of.
“I see messages of people sharing their condolences with me, but I don’t think I will ever get used to this. I don’t know what I would do without this man, because he took me everywhere he went. People would think that I played for AmaZulu because of Bongi, he always held my hand and wanted me to be there for him. What hurts me the most is that on the day he passed on, I couldn’t talk I was shaking; I even broke my phone.”
AmaZulu team members appointed the team’s defender Ramahlwe Mphahlele to speak for the teammates. The teammates joined him on the podium, sang a song, and danced.
“I don’t know which language they use in heaven, and this is our last dance with our friend. Those who don’t know what happens in the changing room this is what we do. But unfortunately, today, we don’t have the strength to sing louder than we usually do. Please forgive the boys, this is the lowest I have ever seen them. I don’t know who is going to unify us as a team and tell us not to lose hope, we are going to score. I don’t know who is going to score the penalty because he never missed a penalty except for that one time in Cape Town.”
Struggling to keep his composure, Ramahlwe says his teammates asked him to speak because they were not able to speak.
“I only ask myself: you ever just sit down and imagine if heaven also has a football club? What if Clive Barker said he wanted a striker and decided he wanted Bongi? To the family, Mr. Ntuli, I don’t think we’ll ever find the right words to comfort you and the family, but our thoughts and prayers are with the whole family. To Sne, I know what Bongi meant to you and the kids who lost their father at this young age. Whatever memories you created with him may you hold on to those memories because that’s what we have.”
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The tragedy that brought them there that day is a good example of how experience is not always a good teacher, says Sandile Zungu, Bonginkosi’s father-in-law.
“My family and I know this difficult journey very well like the palm of our hands. The pain of seeing your loved one suffer and of losing a loved one through illness doesn’t now go away. It finds a permanent place deep in your heart. Like an annoying mosquito testing the hearing ability of the ear, it always just comes back. I wish I was standing here before you under different circumstances, but cancer has no shame and neither does it have any consciousness. It takes away the young and the old alike forcing parents to endure the pain of burying their children.”
Bonginkosi’s father Thulani Ntuli says he and his son were very close and have never seen a child who has a gift from when they were born.
“When he was 9 years old, I bought him a plastic ball because I have always loved my children. We would play together at home, and one day he told his mother that one day he would appear on TV, we were watching a soccer match between the Pirates and Chiefs. He spoke like a person who was a prophet and his dream came true, he appeared on TV.”
