Davies Nkausu (born 1 January 1986) is a Zambian professional footballer who played as a defender in South Africa.
Born in Lusaka and playing for the Zambia national football team, Nkausu has spent all of his club career in South Africa.Quiet night for SA stars as Mweene keeps a clean sheet ZambianFootball.net. 1 December 2011. Retrieved 15 February 2012.
Nkausu played youth football for before joining Pretoria University FC in 2003, and has also represented Zambia internationally at various youth levels, including captaining the country's under-20 team, before graduating to the senior side in 2008.
Club career
Chiparamba Great Eagles
Nkausu was born in Lusaka, Zambia. He began his career with Chiparamba in his native Zambia in 2002. In March 2003, Nkausu and Chiparamba teammate Dominic Yobe went on trial at English club Manchester United after being discovered by United's African scout Frank Lord, who visited Zambia in 2002. The duo became the first Zambian players to be involved with the club.Zambian pair stay at Man Utd BBC. 27 March 2003. Retrieved 2 February 2012. The pair spent two weeks on trial, meeting first-team stars such as Phil Neville, Roy Keane and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as well as manager Sir Alex Ferguson.Two Zambian players meet United stars AllAfrica.com. Retrieved 24 December 2011.Ex-Man Utd trialist joins Cecafa squad Zambianfootball.net. 23 November 2010. Retrieved 24 December 2011. However, nothing came of the trial and Nkausu returned to Chiparamba.
Reflecting on the trial in May 2012, following Ferguson's retirement, Nkausu claimed that the legendary manager had likened him to then-Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira.Nkausu: Fergie once compared me to Vieira MTNFootball.com. 10 May 2013. Retrieved 9 June 2013. He added that Ferguson's encouragement had given the defender the "belief that I [could] make it in football" and admitted, "if I look back, I regret not signing and staying at Old Trafford."Nkausu: I was one time Fergie's Favourite SpyGhana.com. 12 May 2013. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
Pretoria University Seven months after the trial with Manchester United, Nkausu left Zambia for South African National First Division club Pretoria University, with the transfer being completed on 6 October 2003.Foreign Players Joining South African Teams – 2002–2010 South African Football Association. 9 September 2010. Retrieved 27 August 2012. He broke into the club's first team in the 2004–05 season, playing in twenty-nine of Pretoria's thirty-four games. Pretoria finished twelfth in 2004–05.South Africa 2004–05: National First Division RSSSF. 17 August 2005. Retrieved 28 August 2012. In 2005–06 Davies again made twenty-nine league appearances, but this time he also scored one goal. Pretoria finished in eleventh place, and Nkausu was almost ever-present in their thirty National First Division games.South Africa 2005–06: National First Division RSSSF. 7 February 2007. Retrieved 28 August 2012. Nkausu played a reduced twenty-six games in the 2006–07 season, but he scored a personal season record of three goals, which helped propel Pretoria University to a third-placed finish and a promotion playoff. Pretoria defeated Winners Park on away goals but were beaten in the playoff final by AmaZulu. Davies played fewer games still in 2007–08, making seventeen appearances as Pretoria slumped to a seventh-placed finish in the newly implemented Inland Stream.South Africa 2007–08: National First Division 4 September 2008. Retrieved 28 August 2012. The decrease in Pretoria's fortunes caused Nkausu to move to SuperSport United, who had just won the Premier Soccer League (PSL) and were therefore considered one of the best teams in South Africa.Premier Soccer League: 2007–08 ABSA Premiership Standings Premier Soccer League. Retrieved 10 August 2012.
SuperSport United Nkausu moved to SuperSport United ahead of the 2008–09 season. He had made a big leap from the lower reaches of the second division to the top of the first, and predictably made just five appearances in his debut season with the club, making his debut in the 1–0 win over Free State Stars on 30 August 2008. However, he still collected a winner's medal as SuperSport claimed a second consecutive Premier Soccer League title. Nkausu only made three appearances the following season, playing in SuperSport's victories over Free State Stars and Santos as well as the 3–0 loss to AmaZulu in March 2010. Again, SuperSport won the league title.
2010–11 was another frustrating season for Nkausu. He was included as a substitute in many of SuperSport's Premier Soccer League games, but was only used in two of them. He made his first appearance of the season against Orlando Pirates on 30 April 2011 in a 1–0 win. His only other appearance in 2010–11 was in the 3–1 victory over Vasco da Gama on 7 May, near the end of the season. On 5 August Nkausu was included in SuperSport's starting line–up for their 2011 MTN 8 quarter–final 5–2 loss to Ajax Cape Town FC. Nkausu conceded a penalty for a foul on Ajax midfielder Khama Billiat, and was later sent off for dissent after disputing the referee's decision.Ajax Cape Town beat SuperSport United 5–2 KickOff Magazine. 5 August 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2012. The defeat eliminated SuperSport from the competition.
Part of the reason for this lack of playing time was the problem of Nkausu's South African residence permit, which he became eligible for in 2010 having spent five years in the country. In September 2010, despite agreeing a two–year contract with SuperSport, the club decided to wait until Nkausu's permit was granted until registering him, due to the PSL's limit on foreign players.SuperSport United sign Grant Kekana from Tuks KickOff Magazine. 12 January 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2012. Nkausu said "I have signed a new two-year contract here but the condition is that it will become effective the moment I can be registered as a non-foreign player, that is after I get my permanent residency. Right now I am waiting for the papers to be issued so that I can at least start being available for selection because as we speak I am not even registered...Last season I was still registered as a foreigner but this time around I have to be a non-foreigner."Davis Nkausu waits for permanent residence KickOff Magazine. 22 September 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2012. Nkausu finally received his residence permit in March 2011, commenting "The paperwork was completed three days ago and I'm just waiting for my Identity Document now. Just when I thought it would not go through, it finally happened". This allowed Nkausu to be considered non–foreign, opening up another foreign space for manager Gavin Hunt.Defender Nkausu gets permanent SA residency Zambia Post. 10 March 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
Nkausu made his first appearance in the 2011–12 Premier Soccer League in SuperSport's 2–0 win against Platinum Stars on 25 September 2011.Supersport United vs. Platinum Stars – 25 September 2011 – Soccerway He then followed this up by playing the full game against Maritzburg United on 14 October 2011, which SuperSport won 7–0. Nkausu had a run of first-team games in November and December 2011, playing six consecutive matches, with SuperSport keeping three clean sheets in this time.Zambia – D.Nkausu – Profile Soccerway. Retrieved 23 December 2011.
Nkausu featured in SuperSport's 2–1 victory over Mamelodi Sundowns in the semi-final of the Mopani Mayor's Charity Cup on 29 July 2012.Matsatsantsa beat Sundowns in Cup, again SuperSport United F.C. 29 July 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2012. On 4 August 2012 the defender helped SuperSport reach the last four of the 2012 MTN 8, playing the full 90 minutes of the club's 2–1 quarter-final win over Free State Stars and captaining SuperSport for the first time.SuperSport Utd March into Semis SuperSport United F.C. 4 August 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2012.Beaumelle Hails Captain Nkausu MTNFootball.com. 7 August 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2012. The victory set up a semi-final clash with Orlando Pirates. Nkausu played at centre-back in SuperSport's opening 2012-13 Premier Soccer League fixture, a 1–1 draw with Ajax Cape Town on 10 August 2012.United Held by Ajax in Opener SuperSport United F.C. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012. On 19 August 2012 Nkausu played in SuperSport's 0–0 draw with Orlando Pirates in the first leg of their MTN 8 semi-final, making an important block to deny Siyabonga Sangweni in the closing stages.Pirates Play to Goalless Draw IAfrica.com. 19 August 2012. Retrieved 19 August 2012. Six days later he played in SuperSport's 3–0 second-leg victory that earned them a place in the MTN 8 final.
The defender assisted Clifford Mulenga for SuperSport's third goal in a 3–0 win over AmaZulu on 15 September 2012 with a long throw-in.Africa: SuperSport United 3–0 AmaZulu Football411.com. 15 September 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2012. On 22 September Nkausu captained SuperSport in their MTN 8 cup final against Moroka Swallows; a 2–1 loss meant Nkausu and his teammates finished as tournament runners-up.MTN8 Final – As It Happened KickOff.com. 22 September 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.MTN8: Moroka Swallows 2–1 SuperSport – Statistics MTNFootball.com. 22 September 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012. An injury sustained in November limited Nkausu's playing time towards the end of 2012, and he missed further league games through his involvement in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations.Captain September Speaks: December 2012 SuperSport United F.C. 13 December 2012. Retrieved 15 February 2013. Nkausu made his first league appearance for SuperSport for almost two months in the 1–0 loss to Orlando Pirates on 13 February 2013; he conceded a penalty for a foul on Daine Klate, although the tackle actually occurred outside of the penalty area.De Sa: We Made it Tough for Ourselves Football411.com. 14 February 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2013. Nkausu continued to feature sporadically throughout the season, and made 13 league appearances as SuperSport finished sixth. On 25 May 2013, SuperSport reached the Nedbank Cup final, losing 1–0 to Kaizer Chiefs, but Nkausu was omitted from their matchday squad.Kaizer Chiefs vs. SuperSport United – 25 May 2013 Soccerway.com. 25 May 2013. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
In July 2013, Nkausu was denied the chance to feature in SuperSport's friendly against English giants Manchester City – Manuel Pellegrini's first game in charge of the Citizens – due to injury.Man City Stars head to SA TheNewAge.co.za. 9 July 2013. Retrieved 13 July 2013. Nkausu would go on to have a frustrating start to the season with little pitch time, even being omitted from SuperSport's CAF Confederation Cup squad. In January 2014, with Nkausu having made just eight appearances in all competitions, SuperSport CEO Stan Matthews revealed that Mpumalanga Black Aces, Ajax Cape Town and Nkausu's former club University of Pretoria had all enquired about the defender's availability.PSL Trio Chase Nkausu SoccerLaduma. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014. However, on 31 January, Nkausu joined Bloemfontein Celtic on a three-and-a-half-year deal, just hours before the January transfer window slammed shut.Celtic Sign Nkausu SoccerLaduma. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014.Nkausu to debut in Free State derby KickOff.com. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014. Nkausu's last league appearance for SuperSport came in a 2–1 loss to Ajax Cape Town on 26 November 2013; ironically, Soccer Laduma reported that he was due to play for SuperSport against University of Pretoria on the day of his transfer to Bloemfontein.Nkausu set for Celtic SoccerLaduma. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
Bloemfontein Celtic A day after joining Celtic, Nkausu made his debut in a 2–0 derby win at Free State Stars.Mhango, Lamola help Celtic to derby win Supersport.com. 1 February 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
Free State Stars