It was supposed to be another night out with friends but it ended with four teenagers (three boys and a girl) losing their lives in a car accident during the wee hours of March 28, 2020. Chose was one of five passengers in a Toyota RunX that collided with a Toyota Land Cruiser at the Mmopane junction early Saturday morning. Then aged just 17, he was rushed to Bokamoso Private Hospital where he slipped into a coma resulting from head injuries. Chose was, however, released the next day to face the reality that he had lost four of his ‘buddies’ while his football career faced a possible threat.
The youngster, despite leaving the scene physically unharmed, had to seek therapy to deal with the trauma.
“Physically, I only had minor head injuries, only a scar on my forehead so I managed to recover quite easily. Psychologically on the other hand it was a bit of a tricky one as I had just lost four of my mates. So I got enrolled for therapy to help deal with the loss and my emotions,” he said. The visits to the therapists helped shift the left-footed player’s lifestyle as he said he adopted a healthier approach to life while he put his main focus on the football pitch.
At the time, he was in the books of Future Lions Academy in England but suffered another setback as he was forced to return home due to the outbreak of COVID-19.
“I sent my football CV and videos and I was accepted into the academy. Sadly it never materialised because shortly after, COVID-19 hit and we all had to go back home as sporting activities were paused due to the unknown nature of the virus at the time,” he said.
Chose then joined Uniao Flamingo Santos when football activities resumed for the 2021-2022 season.
He quickly caught the eye of Debswana First Division South League contenders, Holy Ghost and joined the team during the mid-season transfer window.
Under Oupa Kowa, Chose started just two games and made four more appearances from the bench. He was an unused substitute as the Holy Boys won the league championship on the final day of the league games.
The Maitengwe-native has now said he is keen to stay on and play in the Botswana Premier League for the next campaign but said he is in talks with clubs for a move back to Europe. “I have ambitions to be recruited by a team overseas and be called up to be part of the senior national team. Yes, I do have enquiries for my services but I prefer not to disclose the information about the teams. They are teams in Europe.”
Chose was in the books of the Police XI development team in 2015 and scored 11 goals to help the team finish as runners-up in the Under-13 Haskins Top 8 Cup. His team went on to finish second place in the Under-15 tournament in 2016 and 2017.
He got his maiden Under-17 call up in 2018 and was appointed vice-captain at AUSC Region 5 Games. Chose went on to make his Under-20 cap a year later and played all the Young Zebras games, scoring two goals in the process at the Under-20 COSAFA Championships in Zambia.
FACT FILE
Full Names: Phadza Goabaone Tabona Chose
Place of Birth: Serowe
Date of Birth: July 5, 2002
Team: Holy Ghost
Position: Left-back/Winger
Hobbies: Gym and video games
Caps: Six Under-17, five Under-20
(two goals)
Career Highlight: Debut goal at 2019 Under-20 Cosafa Championship against Malawi
