Durban - “Chasing the Red Devils” sounds like the name of a Hollywood blockbuster.
But a Durban doctor’s childhood dream of joining England football club Manchester United has taken him across the world and even to the doorstep of the club’s former manager, Sir Alex Ferguson.
Dr Kumaran Devindran Pillay has racked up a plethora of international awards, making him a sought-after chiropractor, especially in the field of sport.
“When you love something so much (United), when they lose you are depressed for one week, and when they win it’s like you’ve won the lotto,” he said, describing his passion for the team.
Pillay has just been appointed to a key position at the University of South Wales, one of the largest educational institutions in the UK.
He is the head of subject in the Department of Allied Health and Chiropractic, with a staff complement of 23.
From humble beginnings in Verulam, and the first person of colour in this post, he said it was a huge honour.
However, even his new colleagues know that when he gets the call from Man U boss, Erik ten Hag, he won’t hesitate to join the club.
“And call they will,” he laughs.
There is no doubt about his pedigree to provide medical services to one of the world’s most popular football clubs.
Pillay is a registered chiropractic sports physician with a post-graduate diploma in sports and exercise medicine. He has an international certificate in sports chiropractic, diplomas in sports psychology, sports nutrition and physiotherapy, and is Fifa qualified in football medicine and several Fifa youth coaching qualifications.
The only thing he doesn’t have is a phone number for South African Benni McCarthy whom he thinks is the key to getting a job at Old Trafford. McCarthy enjoyed huge international success and is a first team coach at the club.
Throughout primary and high school, Pillay played football for Mountview Rangers in Verulam. But he knew he wasn’t good enough to play for Manchester United because he “isn’t a Benni McCarthy” but he could serve the club in another way.
“What is my dream job? Manchester United. What is my first love? Manchester United. My wife comes second, she will tell you,” he jokes.
Experiencing the chiropractic benefits after a football injury convinced him even more that this was the career to follow.
He graduated top of his class, with a Master’s degree in chiropractic from the Durban University of Technology.
Then he received a call that would change the trajectory of his life.
It was from London and an offer to take up a job as a chiropractor in the city of Manchester. He says it was a no-brainer because it would take him closer to the Red Devils.
Cash-strapped but determined, he was offered a sleeping bag and a spot on the floor of a London flat shared by a group of guys. In exchange he cleaned the place. However, a family tragedy saw him return home to Durban.
Undeterred, once he could, he set out again to pursue his dream of being the best doctor and, hopefully, to work at Manchester United. In the process, he notched up several awards as he gained experience, working on three continents, in six countries and nine cities.
He was named Chiropractic Lecturer of the Year at the International Medical University (IMU) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, after two stints as senior lecturer and clinician. In 2016 the Dutch Chiropractic Federation named him Chiropractor of the Year in recognition of his significant contributions to the patient care in the profession in the Netherlands.
But football was always part of the journey, no matter in which country he worked.
Before Pillay took up his position in Wales, he was again based in Manchester where he helped second division side Baguley Athletic Football Club advance to the first division.
Then, he discovered that Benni McCarthy had been appointed as a first team coach at Manchester United. He saw that as a sign and went to Old Trafford to see him.
Pillay says the security guard laughed when he said he was from South Africa and wanted to meet Benni.
“I left a note at the boom gate and, of course, he didn’t get it.” He returned for two more days, each time leaving a note for McCarthy.
On the fourth day, a friend mentioned that he knew where Ferguson lived and that Pillay should go there instead.
“So, I said: ‘Isn’t that a bit like stalking behaviour?’ And he said: ‘No, no, why don’t you go there? You always wanted to meet him. He’s a nice guy, maybe you can drop the letter with him, maybe he can pass it on to Benni.’”
Ferguson wasn’t home. Determined to meet him, Pillay returned the next day, only to learn he was in Scotland.
“So, I go back on the next Wednesday and the gate opens, and Sir Alex Ferguson comes out and says: ‘Are you the South African chap?’”
Pillay was dumbfounded and couldn’t say a word. Ferguson asked if he was fine and said he would hand over Pillay’s letter to McCarthy.
He hasn't heard back from Old Trafford. “Finding Benni” sounds like a Hollywood blockbuster, but Pillay is determined to do so and says that one day, his dream of working at Old Trafford will come true.
The Indpendent on Saturday