Domestic football will have proper reason to celebrate an unusual achievement as its longest serving player turns 40 on Tuesday.
Vuyo Mere has defied an environment where players are constantly judged, harassed, ridiculed, and pushed out due to age to clock this landmark birthday celebration.
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Mere remains registered as a player at TS Galaxy where he has spent the past two years.
Though he has yet to make an appearance this season, Mere has been on the bench for 18 games leaving his chances of game time just a stone’s throw away.
As he celebrates his 40th, Mere has incredibly played professional football since the 2001/02 season when he broke through at Hellenic.
This means ‘Smereza’ has stood the test of time for 23 years and once had Thabo Mngomeni, Craig Rosslee, and Robert Nauseb as teammates.
Mere went to trials at English club Sheffield United as a teenager and while it didn’t work out, he was then able to have a career that took him to Mamelodi Sundowns, Platinum Stars, Moroka Swallows, BidVest Wits, and Swallows again before arriving at Galaxy.
Along the way he won 10 Bafana Bafana including playing at the AFCON finals after having represented the country at Under-17 and 20 levels.
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Mere has seen it all be it living on the fast lane while at Sundowns where he won trophies through to further silverware again at Platinum Stars.
With his next appearance Mere is set to join Andre Arendse, Bruce Grobbelaar, John Moshoeu, Arthur Bartman, Siyabonga Nomvete, Hans Vonk, and Jean Marc-Ithier who have all played past in the DStv Premiership past their 40th birthdays through the PSL era years.
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