By Ime Bassey

Nigerians will not easily forget their joy when the Golden Eaglets won African’s first World Cup at the Kodak U-16 World Cup in China in 1985. The tournament launched many of the players in the squad into limelight and brought them to an amiable height in football with Super Eagles. Baldwin Bazuaye stand out as one of those whose blissful career commenced from that China ’85 event.

Bazuaye, a product of grass root football in the early 80s shares with Sunday Vanguard Sports his life after football and how he has been able to cope. He said he has been handling life’s challenging situation as it comes with Jesus Christ by his side and squeezing himself into the social class that fits him most.

“Sometimes when I look back, I discover that I cannot turn back the hand of the clock. This I feel most times when I train with my players and they say, coach we will register you as a player again, I will just laugh. “We are managing life the way it comes as it is not as it were when we were playing. Life is all about different classes, that is, the high, middle and lower class. So no matter the class I have found myself, I have to manage it. I have endeavored to put Jesus by my side, so I will not lose my grip as I have known that live is not stable.

“When you leave the game, you will become an official and not a player. Now you have to seat with the management of the team who will always tell you what to do as the team leader. This you have to absorb with patience and look for ways to tell them what you think is right with reasons that will convince them.

“I will say I have missed a lot as a person now because when I go to the stadium nowadays, I cannot find fans around like in our days when before the time of the match, fans have already filled the stadium. These days you see people working into the stadium by 4pm which is the kick off time,”Bazuaye said.

He took time to recall how he came about playing in the Golden Eaglets, Flying Eagles and the Super Eagles respectively.

“I started playing football from my school days before joining youth clubs which we do not have anymore. We participated in competitions like Ramat Cup organized by YSFON. I was picked from this competition to be part of the China ’85 Kodak World Cup and from then on, my career in football blossomed and I give thanks to God.

“After the World Cup in China, late coach (Chris) Idumeze called some of us to join the Flying Eagles. We never believed it could turn our career into something else. Then we were playing for the passion of the game but now, players are playing the game for the money involved.

“As we were still savouring the joy of being part of the Flying Eagles, Clemens Westerhof was brought in and he came for us in the Flying Eagles which I am happy I was part of. It was exciting then to play alongside senior players like, Rashidi Yekini and Stephen Keshi. I had the privilege of going to Europe and managed to play for some clubs.

“On returning from the U-17 World Cup, I played for Union Bank and later moved to Bendel Insurance, and then to JIB Rocks in Jos. I moved to Gabon after the Nations Cup in Morocco in 1988. Prior to the Nations Cup in Morocco, we had played in the WAFU Cup with all home based players like Aloy Agu, David Ngodigha, Daniel Amokachi, Uche Okechukwu, and Ben Iroha. From this point all of us started making our way to various destinations.

I had a short spell at Gabon as I had to return back to the country to join Julius Berger. I made another trip to Europe again but this time to Greece.

“I retired in 2003 as I played my last football game for Sunshine Stars of Akure they appreciated me for the one season I was with them. From there I had to go for my coaching course and later the CAF course with some other seminars. I’ve heard the opportunity to coach Bendel Insurance and Lobi Stars but now I am back once again to Insurance of Benin to see how we can make it what it was in our time as players,” Bazuaye concluded.