Former Black Africa agile shot-stopper Protasius ‘Metra’ Toromba is one of a few local footballers who have mysteriously disappeared from the scene without a trace. Toromba is one of five prominent footballers to have gone missing alongside fellow footies in the following sequence: Blue Waters’ target man Neema ‘Lemmy’ Lazarus, Ben Tumuna of Red Fire, and Namib Woestyn’s inspirational skipper Laurentius Daito Hagedoorn, as well as former SKW and South West Africa (SWA) playmaker Kendal Carsten. Toromba was destined for greatness and formed an integral part of the invincible Black Africa side that swept their opponents aside in countless knockout cup tournaments in the late 80s and early 90s. However, his blossoming football career was abruptly interrupted by unpleasant shenanigans off the field of play, which landed him in trouble with law authorities, ultimately rendering him one of the most wanted men after he escaped from custody in 1994.
History reveals that Katutura giants Black Africa Football Club dominated domestically for many years with their exciting brand of football, courtesy of students from their unofficial feeder school of excellence – St Joseph’s secondary school (Dobra).
Ho w e v e r, th e team was always found wanting in the goalkeeping department as many of their net guards did not precisely match the five-star quality of the outfield playing personnel in the star-studded squad.
That was unt i l the arrival of a raw darkish-hide boy from Otjinene going by the name of Protasius Tjijeri ‘Metra’ Toromba, who was thrown into the mix of things. The son of prominent taxi owner/operator, the late Kaunanganga Toromba, Metra was just the missing link in a smooth-sailing locomotive and quickly fitted in like a glove in hand despite his rookie tag.
The young goalie elbowed regular net guard, the error-prone Atab Wermann, out of the starting lineup, showing sharp reflexes to win the hearts and admiration of his new teammates, including the usually hard-to-please BA diehards.
He would go on to win several high-profile knockout cup tournaments with the then-unplayable Gemengde out f i t , including the coveted league title.
M e t r a w a s subsequently touted to become a future national team number one.
Re g r e t t abl y, a profoundly upsetting epi sode unfolded when the young man temporarily took his eyes off the ball, falling foul of law enforcers’ crime sheet. Metra was accused of brutally killing Gobabis farmer Danie van Niekerk and his trusted farm worker Willem Rooinasie in July 1991.
However, the streetwise trial-awaiting goalie appeared to have lost none of his agility as he effortlessly managed to wangle his way out of the holding cells without using force. It was reported that the Black Africa goalie smooth-talked a high-ranking on-duty police sergeant to assist him in casually strolling out from custody without the slightest hindrance.
The acrobatic goalkeeper has been on the run ever since and many conflicting narratives have emerged that the former shot-stopper has taken a bow from the game of life, whereas others claim that the cunning brother has, in the meantime, undergone an artificial sex transplant and is now disguised as a fully-fledged madame, apparently perfectly attired in traditional Ovaherero women’s dresses to avoid identification and keeping sniffing cops at arms-length.
As it stands, Metra is not the only former local footballer whose whereabouts remain a mystery. The likes of former Namib Woestyn flying winger Laurentius ‘Daito’ Hagedoorn and Red Fire goal-scoring machine Ben Tumuna also disappeared into thin air without a trace.
In addition, former Blue Waters lethal target man Neema ‘Lemmy’ Lazarus, also disappeared en route to exile. Former Sport Klub Windhoek (SKW), and West Africa (SWA) midfield general Kendal Carsten is also missing in action. The latter was amongst the second group of mixed-race players to represent SWA.