In this edition of My First Pay Cheque, KickOff catches up with Venda Football Academy striker Rhulani Manzini on his very first pay cheque.
The former Chippa United and Jomo Cosmos centre-forward reveals details of his first salary when starting out as a professional footballer.
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The Bushbuckridge-born Manzini won the 2021 Nedbank Cup with Tshakuma Tsha Madzhivhandila FC.
Who you signed for…
"My first pay cheque in professional football was at Batau, we were playing in the National First Division."
How much was it?
"That was around 2009 and 2010. I was getting R5 000 per month.
"Before that, I was at Acornbush United where I was earning R800."
How I celebrated?
"Coming from a poor family I couldn't do anything special, as a breadwinner I had to start everything from scratch.
"I had to build a house at home, so I was not that kind of a guy who would go out and enjoy a beer with friends.
"From a very young age I was very focused."
What I bought with it?
"I bought myself soccer boots. A pair of Nike Mercurials. The bright colours it's what attracted me to them.
"Most of the money I had to send it home. I would just keep whatever I was left with.
"I was still 20 years old then, I started playing football at a very young age."
Did it last you the first full month?
"It lasted maybe a week because the club was taking care of us. Our boss really took care of us.
"There were people cooking for us, they fed us maybe twice a day.
"So, there was no need really to buy ourselves food. I'm very happy with how my football career turned out."
