Trigger-happy Black Leopards are searching for a third coach after the quick-fire dismissal of the club’s mentors in just two months.
The Venda-based side’s relationship with Ghanaian mentor Maxwell Konadu went sour before he was fired alongside assistant Solly Luvhengo.
The duo was replaced by Zeca Marques and Joel Masutha. The latter served as the assistant to the former Moroka Swallows coach, Marques. Leopards chairman Tshifhiwa Thidiela was confident about the changes.
“The team’s fortunes will improve under the Portuguese national [Marques]. With 13 matches left in the season, anything is still possible.”
Under Mr Lollipop, as Mar-ques is popularly known, Leopards did not really do badly.
He guided the club to bagging eight points out of the possible 15, this after two wins, two draws and one loss. But this didn’t seem good enough to please club bosses, who showed Marques and Masutha the door.
With eight matches remaining, Leopards find themselves in 7th position, with Limpopo rivals Baroka FC in eighth position.
The two sides face each other in the Limpopo Derby in a league match at Thohoyandou Stadium on March 29. As much as their clash could be seen by many as the battle for Limpopo’s supremacy, the reality of the matter is that both sides desperately need the three points at stake to enhance their chances of finishing in the promotional play-offs as the league is drawing closer to the end.
Durban City are on top of the log with 42 points, a gap of 11 and 13 points between Leopards and Baroka, with only goal difference separating clubs from the second to fourth, Kruger United, Orbit FC and JDR Stars, on 36 points each.
Fifth-placed Milford are on 35 points, meaning Leopards and Baroka’s chances for a top three finish, which will qualify them for the promotional play-offs, remain alive.
