Exclusive: Keet on his move to Belgium

29 June 2011

An impressive 2010/11 season at BidVest Wits has seen the National South African U23 keeper, Darren Keet, acquire a move to Belgium club KV Kortrijk. We had the chance to sit down and speak to the youngster about the move and the what lies in his future.

Darren there are exciting times ahead for you as you depart for Belgium club KV Kortrijk. How do you feel ahead of your move to Belgium?

Yeah, I am very excited about my move. I am looking forward to a new challenge and playing at a new club. Every professional wants to ply his trade overseas and this is my chance to shine, for myself and for my country.

How did the transfer to Kortrijk come about?

K.A.A. Gent in Belgium were actually interested in me and my agent sent them some video footage of me and they liked it, but when they found out I was only 1.83m tall they didn’t want to sign me.

Really, why is that?

Well, they were looking for a keeper with the minimum height of 1.88m tall. I obviously didn’t fit the bill. So my agent sent my footage to Kortrijk and they requested me to come for a training session, a kind of trial at the club.

And…

I went for one training session and they liked what they saw I guess and they signed me.

And what are your goals while you are at Kortrijk?

My first goal is to play regular football. I want to be the first choice and get as much game time as possible.

Are you worried that you won’t be able to communicate with the players because you are in a different country where the main language is not English?

No, not at all (smiles), the guys all speak English there.

Are you sad to leave BidVest Wits?

Of course, I learned a lot there and I had a good coach in Roger De Sa.

What was your biggest highlight while at Wits?

The winning of the Nedbank Cup in 2010, that was fantastic.

Your impressive performances at Wits has not only seen you sign for a club in Belgium, but it has also seen you into the National U23 side where you now form an important part of the team. How does that feel?

It is always an honour to represent your country and playing for the U23’s has been a dream come true. 

Recently, the U23’s beat Zimbabwe 2-0 in the first leg of an All African Games qualifier. I know you didn’t play because of your commitments to your Belgium club, but you did take part in the sides 5-1 thumping of Benin a couple of weeks ago which saw the U23’s into the next stage of qualifying for the London Olympics in 2012, tell me about that?

Congrats to the boys for a great win over Zimbabwe, they played really well, especially Bongani. Yeah, against Benin we just clicked as a team, but I think a lot of it has to do with Coach Shakes Mashaba who has us playing as a cohesive unit. He knows the players and he knows how to get us to win.

What would it mean to you if South Africa did make it to the London Olympics in 2012?

It would be a great honour and it would mean a lot for both myself and the country. The last time we were at the Olympics was in 2000 and that team did well. If we do make it we will have a lot to live up to, but we are just taking it one game at a time.

And how does Darren Keet cope with pressure?

Pressure is part of being a professional footballer and I just deal with it. It comes with job. If you can’t handle the heat get out of the kitchen.

Thanks for your time Darren, all the best.