[3] By 1959, Ndhlovu was co-opted into the welfare section of mine community development as a club organizer and it was in the same year that he found his feet and became a lynchpin at Wanderers.

He was the ultimate entertainer for his skill on the ball, close control and deadly shooting were a marvel to witness and few Zambian soccer fans could claim to have never heard of the name "Zoom".

Ndhlovu's eye-catching performances in the number 10 shirt for both Wanderers and Zambia made him very popular throughout the country and he was rewarded with the Zambian Sportsman of the Year award for 1964.

Apart from the prize money of £590, the match carried extra motivation as no Zambian club had won it before and a decision had been taken to do away with the cup by having one last final, after which the winners would keep the trophy for good.

The final turned out to be one of the most famous matches in Zambian football history as the Mighty men lined up before a racially segregated crowd of 18,000.

[6] Ndlhovu had a chance to play professional football in 1967 after former Wanderers coach Doug Sammons arranged a stint for him with Atlanta Chiefs in the United States, together with Howard Mwikuta, Freddie Mwila and Emment Kapengwe but he turned down the opportunity to concentrate on developing the game in Zambia, and also due to uncertainty over the legality of the league.

[8] With Ndhlovu as captain, Wanderers won the Zambian league championship in 1963, 1965, 1966, 1967 and 1969 and numerous cup competitions and earned the tag ‘legendary cup fighters.’ Ndhlovu's popularity was such that he was featured on adverts for various products and on 25 October 1973, he was bestowed with the Insignia of Honour by President Kenneth Kaunda for his service to Zambian football, the first footballer to get such an award.

In June 1967 he was succeeded by Dickson Makwaza as captain and in December of the same year was handed coaching duties, leading Zambia to a victorious Jamhuri Cup outing in Kenya as player-coach.

[12] He however made a comeback for the national team in December 1968 in a CAN 1970 qualifier against Mauritius in Port Louis after Zambia drew the first leg 2–2 in Lusaka.

[13] Ndhlovu defended his behaviour on the Camerounian trip and the matter dragged on in the press and he even considered quitting football altogether as it 'was not the only sport that he could play.

He however first handled the national team in December of the same year during the Jamhuri tournament against Kenya in Nairobi, at the age of 30 making him the youngest coach to take charge of Zambia in a full international match.

[20] At the 1992 Cup of Nations Zambia disappointed yet again, losing in the quarter-finals to eventual winners Côte d'Ivoire and the team arrived home to a barrage of criticism with fans calling for his resignation.

He refused to step down saying he was the best man for the job and resisted calls for German coach Jochen Figge, who at the time was attached to the Ministry of Sport as a Development Officer, to join the squad.

[24] This left the FAZ in a quandary and when Zambia kicked off the 1994 Nations Cup qualifiers unconvincingly with Figge as Technical Advisor and Simutowe as coach, struggling to overcome Mauritius 2–1 at home and defeating newcomers South Africa 1–0 in Johannesburg, Ndhlovu bounced back into the saddle for the 1994 World Cup qualifiers with a convincing 2–0 home victory against Tanzania in Lusaka and a 4–0 win over Namibia in Windhoek.

[26] Ndhlovu then packed his bags and headed for Lobatse in Botswana where he took charge of one of the country's top clubs LCS Gunners.

However, he made another comeback but this time as Technical Advisor when in November 1996, the Government and the FAZ could not reach an agreement with Roald Poulsen over a new contract and Freddie Mwila was appointed coach.

The duo's reign was short-lived as they resigned on 11 April 1997 when Zambia failed to beat Zaire in a World Cup qualifier, drawing 2–2 in Harare.

[29] George Mungwa took over as caretaker coach but he could not save Zambia's campaign as South Africa grabbed the only ticket to France ‘98 in the group.

Ndhlovu then went back to Mufulira to help out at Wanderers and took a low profile until 2000 when he contested the FAZ presidency but lost to Evaristo Kasunga by a landslide margin.

According to former FAZ General Secretary Bennet Simfukwe, Ndhlovu was Northern Rhodesian champion in long jump, high jump and pole vault, and Ndhlovu, Simfukwe and Owen Nkhama were the only black African members of the 1961 Northern Rhodesian basketball team that toured Southern Rhodesia and other British colonies.

Ndhlovu first experienced poor health in February 2000 when he collapsed during a training session at Central Sports Stadium in Mufulira.

[32] In February 2001, he underwent an operation to remove a tumour from his large intestine but his battle with cancer continued until he succumbed and died at Malcolm Watson Hospital in Mufulira on 10 October 2001.

[33] Activities in Mufulira came to a standstill as several former and present Wanderers players were joined by other mourners in paying their last respects to the footballer called "Zoom."