The way Thalente Mbatha has been raising his hand at Orlando Pirates through his short time at the club has come with the reward of a Bafana Bafana call-up.
Mbatha is in the squad for the two AFCON qualifiers against Uganda and South Sudan, and would be pinching himself to ascertain that he is surely in the national team having been struggling to merely get minutes at SuperSport United this time last year.
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The turn of the New Year came with a move to Pirates where he has needed only 21 games to get Hugo Broos taking notice.
"I'm fortunate to be here and it is a dream come true for me to be here," says Mbatha.
"One thing I can say is that if you work hard, it will definitely pay off.
"In as much as you have the talent, if you not working hard then I think some things will lack here and there.
"But if talent is going with hard work, then I believe that you will get somewhere," added the 24-year-old as he prepared for his first session with the senior national team.
While Mbatha's name has been linked with interest from English Championship club Cardiff City, he insisted that his focus is on the job at Pirates.
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"My focus is at Pirates, and I just recently got myself a contract at Pirates, so I think everything I'm doing I'm doing it for Pirates.
"They are the ones who will decide what will happen in the bear future but for me my focus is at Pirates," he notes.