Stellenbosch FC rising star Kyle Jurgens has spoken to KickOff about the team he'd like to play for in the future, Steve Barker's influence and the DStv Premiership star he looks up to.
Sunglass Hut and KickOff approached four rising stars who participated in a photoshoot where the quartet of youngsters got to show off a side to them that fans may have not seen before.
As part of the campaign, this week sees Stellies Diski Shield captain Kyle Jurgens sit down with KickOff to reveal a day in the life of a professional footballer alongside behind-the-scenes details such as the dressing room DJ and dealing with social media trolls.
?? Capturing Greatness on and off the Pitch! ????
— Kick Off (@KickOffMagazine) September 11, 2023
In partnership with Oakley and Sunglass Hut, brace yourselves for an exclusive behind-the-scenes look as Kyle Jurgens steps into a whole new arena – the world of style and sophistication! pic.twitter.com/n6OwBnyVyM
1. When did you realise that you wanted to become a pro footballer?
Jurgens: It was when I was at the Ubuntu Football Academy, where we did a lot of courses of professional footballers and how their life is and how we can do things differently to prevent mistakes.
From there, I took it seriously and I actually wanted to become a professional footballer and that's when I took the step to come to Stellenbosch and start it off.
2. In terms of working with your coach Steve Barker, what has he done for your development as a player?
Jurgens: He let me train with the first team when I was still at Diski Challenge level. He let me gain experience and taught me what to do, like getting into the right spaces, when to receive the ball and when not to…
3. In terms of outside football, what do you guys normally get up to?
Jurgens: During the week, we spend a lot of time playing PlayStation and watching movies. On weekends or when we're off, we mostly like to go home to spend time with our families, instead of spending time with each other because we hang out all the time anyway.
4. Who is your undisputed, greatest footballer of all time?
Jurgens: I mostly look up to Ronaldo, CR7.
5. What do you idolise the most about Ronaldo?
Jurgens: He has a lot of talent but it's the hard work he puts in. Hard work always beats talent and I try to put that into my work so that I can become better over time and grow as a player.
6. What would you say has been the best advice you've been given?
Jurgens: For me, the best one is: 'When things never go your way, you always have to push because once the opportunity comes, then you know you're ready'
7. Looking ahead to the season, what are some of your personal objectives?
Jurgens: It would be trying to get minutes on the pitch because obviously I won't be starting and playing every game. So, getting minutes, help playing and doing what I can to the best of my ability so that I can cement my place in the team.
8. Tell us about your style man? What are you wearing?
Jurgens: I like comfortable clothes, being neat and presentable. I like to keep it simple, the colour scheme is important, I like matching colours and being comfortable.
9. Do you have a style inspiration? Or someone you look up to in terms of style?
Jurgens: The ones that stand out to me are the players abroad. Like Jadon Sancho or Marcus Rashford. The young players pushing that new fashion is what stands out to me.
10. Who's the DJ of the changing room?
Jurgens: Siya [Sibande], Qobolwakhe, he's the left back. He normally plays Amapiano, that's the main one. Sometimes he switches to RB and of course, Gqom.
11. What type of music gets you going before a game?
Jurgens: Depending on the game situation, if I know I will have to run a lot, I switch to more hype music. Like NBA Youngboy and Da Baby. Listening to their music fires me up. So closer to matchday I listen to more hype music, but during the week I listen to more chilled music.
12. In terms of social media, how important is it for a player to have an online presence?
Jurgens: It plays a big role in trying to get sponsors and advertising yourself. When people look at your page they must be like 'One day I would like to be like him, he represents himself so well' and like people can look at you as a role model. You can change people's lives. So yes, for me it plays a big role.
13. Do you ever get to deal with trolls on social media? If so, how do you deal with them?
Jurgens: Normally I don't take note of things like that. If I read it, I wouldn't be fazed, because they [fans] are not in the situation that footballers find themselves in. Like how we see the game and how they see the game is totally different. They would maybe see things easier than what we would, so I wouldn't take it as something I need to worry about, they don't know football the way we see it. So, I don't take the trolls seriously.
14. How do you keep yourself busy in between training sessions?
Jurgens: I like to do some gym work because I need to get physically stronger. The guys in the PSL are way bigger than me. So, I would spend more time in the gym and when I'm done I have some recovery shakes and to destress, I watch some movies and listen to music.
15. What type of movies do you like? Do you have a favourite?
Jurgens: My favourite would be the Fast Furious Tokyo Drift. I like the start of the Fast Furious movie franchise because I love cars. I also enjoy those military movies, just to see how people handle tough situations mentally.
16. Do you have a preferred country you'd like to play football in the future?
Jurgens: I would say England. I played against English teams, and I like the way they play, their structures, the development and just how high quality the coaching is. So, for me to go there in the future to improve my game is very important. To my style, Arsenal and maybe Brighton.
17. What attracts you to a team like Brighton Hove Albion?
Jurgens: The style of play, how they play with each other is fearless. It's not all over the place, it's well structured.
18. Besides Ronaldo, is there a player right now you look up to?
Jurgens: It would be Joshua Kimmich and Keagan Buchanan.
19. If you didn't become a professional footballer, what would you have done instead?
Jurgens: I would have looked at Deep Sea diving. From a young age I've been watching videos and seeing how it's done and obviously I love swimming.
20. Do you have a pre-game ritual or a superstition?
Jurgen: I don't really do much. I mainly look at videos of what we can do [tactically] and try to picture it before kick-off.
21. How do you deal with disappointment after a loss?
Jurgens: That's a big one because I'm passionate and I enjoy winning. So, it's very hard. I speak to whoever, so I can get it off my chest and feel better because I can't be dwelling on certain match situations and not growing and improving on it. I try to recover from it by speaking to my friends and they'll try and help me where I can.
22. If you had to give advice to your younger self, what would it be?
Jurgens: As a youngster I was struggling a lot with my attitude. So, I would tell myself to never be hard on myself. I was too focused on the mistakes I was making and not really growing as a player and that would affect my game. I would also advise myself to control my anger and get past certain situations because everyone makes mistakes.
23. What's the biggest lesson you've learnt so far in your short career?
Jurgens: As a youngster I would normally look at other players and ask, 'Why them and not me?' so the lesson I've learnt from that is the players that peak early, also fall the fastest. So, I learnt that going at my own pace is the best and staying in my lane is going to be the best for me because there's no traffic in my lane.
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