Regina Mogolola has eyes like the moon that shines on Limpopo, a smile as wide as the river itself, and a face as open as the plains of her beloved province. So far, so serene.
But below the neck she is a torqued tangle of arms and legs — that crash, knees first, then elbows, into a couch as she makes her way through Banyana Banyana’s hotel lobby in Oujda.
She smiles, untangles herself, and strides on. It’s quite some entrance, and it tells you there’s more to her than meets the eye.
Ask the JVW midfielder a single question and she will use up all 700 words granted for this piece. There’s a light inside her so bright. And a powerful impulse to rise above whatever might be slung in her path like a mean, two-footed slide tackle.
Without those attributes, Mogolola might never have re-emerged onto the international stage. Before the current Women’s African Cup of Nations (Wafcon), the last time she was in a Banyana jersey was in Santiago in October 2018, when they played two friendlies against Chile.
She spent the first game on the bench, and the second in the stands because she wasn’t in the match-day squad. Finally, after almost 70 minutes against Ghana at the Honneur Stadium on Monday, coach Desiree Ellis nodded in Mogolola’s direction.
Off came her substitute’s bib. On came her tangle of arms and legs.
It’s also about working hard and not giving up. Because when you love something you’ve got to go the extra mile.
— Regina Mogolola
Banyana’s 2-0 victory was almost assured by then. But in her 20-odd minutes on the field, Mogolola did what was needed and, importantly, looked like she belonged.
What was it like to be back?
“It’s a privilege,” Mogolola told the Sunday Times. “It’s also about working hard and not giving up. Because when you love something you’ve got to go the extra mile.”
What was it like to be out for so long?
“Sometimes we mess up our opportunities. But if it had to happen, it had to happen. Let me be a better Regina now. We make mistakes. And we realise that we don’t want to repeat them.”
What had she done to come back?
“I don’t like to be relaxed. When it’s my time to move, it’s my time to move. I wake up in the morning and pray. After that, I go for a run. Then I train with some boys. On Sundays, we play matches.”
In short, she put her head down and got on with it. For almost seven years …
Ellis said Mogolola’s shift to JVW, after she had been released by Mamelodi Sundowns in March, was vital: “At the beginning of the season, a lot of players were moving. It was going to be interesting to see how they adapted and what they brought to their new clubs,” the coach said.
“Regina has had a very good season at JVW. She’s probably one of the reasons that has allowed them to be so expansive up-field. They also play three at the back, and she’s been key in holding that together. At Sundowns she had different roles, so we probably didn’t see the best of her.”
Ga-Phago, Mogolola’s home village, has seen her best for all of her 32 years. The pocket square of land measuring 2.59 square kilometres north of Polokwane is central to her story. “When you come from the villages you don’t give up. We keep on working, no matter what.”
She goes home as often as life allows, and she knows playing under the national flag “means a lot” there. “I represent God, I represent my family, and I represent the people of my village.”
Sometimes home finds her. At OR Tambo International Airport, on her way to Morocco, an airport worker approached. It took a while, but she yelled: “It’s you!”
The man was also from Ga-Phago. “He was a small boy when we started playing football together in the village,” Mogolola said.
“I don’t need to be reminded about where I come from. Wherever I go my name stays the same, my accent stays the same. But it’s good to know people are behind me.”
They are, many of them from far further afield than Ga-Phago.
Meanwhile, Banyana Banyana needed a late equaliser by defender Bambanani Mbane to keep their hopes of making the quarterfinals in Morocco alive after playing a 1-1 draw against Tanzania on Friday night. Banyana may need just a point in their final Group C match against Mali tomorrow to finish on top of their group. Mali and Banyana are leading the group on four points.
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