Hat-trick earns corporal Katongo instant promotion

Zambia captain, striker and talisman Christopher Katongo started an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier as an army corporal and finished it as a sergeant.

The instant promotion by military chiefs was his reward for scoring a hat-trick against fierce regional rivals South Africa in a 3-1 triumph at Newlands stadium in Cape Town.

Although Katongo ceased to be a regular member of the army after joining South African club Jomo Cosmos from Green Buffaloes in 2004, he remained a reserve force member.

Born 30 years ago in copper mining town Mufulira, Katongo has come a long way since the days of drill and weapons training in Lusaka, with spells at clubs in South Africa, Denmark, Germany, Greece and present 'home' China.

But wherever his travels take him, the humble, softly spoken star always responds to national call-ups and skippered the Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) to a dream-come-true Africa Cup title in Libreville last February.

Not only did Katongo-inspired Zambia upset Ivory Coast by winning the final via a penalty shootout, but they also honoured the 1993 national squad that was wiped out just off the Gabonese coast when a military aircraft crashed.

The efforts of Katongo did not go unnoticed as he won the 2012 BBC Footballer of the Year award with 40% of a public vote ahead of stars like Didier Drogba and Yaya Toure from the Ivory Coast.

Katongo surprisingly made only the top 10 for the CAF Footballer of the Year competition won for a second straight year by Toure, but he never complained publicly about the decision of African national-team coaches.

He did speak warmly about winning the BBC award: "This is a fantastic moment for me and I thank those who voted. It is something I will never forget in my career.

"To be among the players who have won this award -- I will go to sleep with a smile on my face. I did my best and the people have spoken," added the scorer of many vital international goals.

None was more crucial than that against Uganda last September at the Levy Mwanawasa national stadium in Ndola which gave Zambia the slenderest of advantages in a 2013 Cup of Nations qualifier.

It is just as well Katongo netted because Uganda won the return match by a similar 1-0 score only for Zambia to emerge victorious in a marathon penalty shootout despite Katongo failing to convert the first spot kick for his side.

France-born coach Herve Renard has retained virtually the entire squad that returned triumphant from Gabon last February for Group C clashes with Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Nigeria in South African city Nelspruit.

The Chipolopolo are widely expected to survive the first stage with the Super Eagles and should they go all the way again and win a second consecutive title, there will probably be calls for Katongo to be made a brigadier.