A young Orlando Pirates player who has been nominated for the Betway Premiership Goal of The Season award, Camren Dansin, has taken on the responsibility of running the culture of this Soweto club with players who started from their nursery and eventually became pillars.
Dansin (21) said this after leading the Pirates as captain when they won 1-0 against UD Las Palmas of Spain in a friendly match on Wednesday at the Marbella Sports Center, in that country.
Although Dansin didn’t get much of a jersey last season, he is still talked about because of the shot he hit, which left Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Ronwen Willians standing when Bucs drew 1-1 with Mamelodi Sundowns in the league match.
That goal is in the running for the goal of the year award as the Premier Soccer League (PSL) will announce the winners on Monday.
Pirates will wrap up their Spanish tour today by facing NEOM SC from Saudi Arabia at 7 pm. In this trip, they played in a draw with Cordoba CF, and won against Cadiz FC and Las Palmas separately. The club still got it from Al-Ittihad of the Saudi Pro League.
After the game against Las Palmas in Zimnyama which they won with a goal by Boitumelo Radiopane, Dansin expressed his happiness at being given the opportunity to lead the team.
“The proof that the Pirates believe in giving the young guys a chance is clear. So for me, I leave it to the coach the way I do when I’m on the field what to do with that,” said Dansin.
“I am humbled to be chosen as the captain of the day because everywhere you look at this team’s camp you see a leader. I will continue to use the opportunity, and then it will be up to the coach. My only goal is to intensify the rivalry.
“It is encouraging to see players from the younger squads of Pirates such as Mbekezeli (Mbokazi) and Relebohile (Mofokeng) progressing but the most important thing for me is to settle in Pirates first.
“A lot of things seem to be coming together as we strive to defend the title (of the league) but there are still some things that we still have to fix.”
The Betway Premiership Goal of the Season award, Dansin will share with Glody Lilepo of Kaizer Chiefs and Siyanda Ndlovu who signed for Mamelodi Sundowns from Lamontville Golden Arrows.