Episode 09 ’Happy Birthday dear Delron’ The Winger: Guest Delron Buckley (BVB 2005-9)

Welcome to the BvB London fan club podcast as every week the focus of the show will be on exploring a facet of Borussia Dortmund life by talking to experts and former participants of the club's life, like players, fans, journalists who have covered the club and functionaries and experts and thus make our BvB more accessible to non-German speakers in particular. 

On today's episode, Ben is joined by Irish Fulham and BvB fan Colm McNabola and Radio Brandenburg-Berlin's (RBB) sports commentator Phillip Buechner to chat with one of the great footballers of South Africa, the former Borussia Dortmund winger Delron Buckley.

Buckley had two spells with Borussia Dortmund between 2005-2009. Delron shares his memories of players and friends like Ebbi Smolarek, Kuba, Hummels, Roman Weidenfeller and Jan Koller. He reveals memories of Dede's great player parties and fills in the gaps surrounding the 2006 DFB Pokal final which was narrowly lost to Bayern at a time when BvB were facing a massive financial battle to survive. Delron returned in 2008 to play for BvB under in Juergen Klopp's first season at Westfalenstadion.  

 

Now 42, he recounts his own battles with the pressures of professional football and the challenges of playing at the top. Plus his hot-cold relationship with the Suedtribuene that included a very special happy 30th birthday rendition and impressions of the people and city of Dortmund, becoming a German citizen and the special reason his heart will always be in the Ruhrgebiet.

 

We also hear about Delron's 9 years with VFL Bochum and his experience as Arminia Bielfeld's top scorer. Buckley also an international career in which he gained 73 caps for South Africa including playing at the FIFA World Cups 1998 and 2002 and he talks about growing up in racially divided South Africa, breaking the mould in Bundesliga football at a time when few African players were represented in Germany's top tier and why racism can be so destructive to the game of football. 

 

Remember to send us your comments, share the show with friends and to apply for tickets contact the club via the website which is borussiadortmundlondon.co.uk or join the London BvB community at our online group at Facebook.com/borussiadortmundfanclubengland. During the season you can also come to watch a game at our meet-up Stammtisch at the Naughty Bar, just off Oxford Street, in Cleveland street London. 

 

 

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