Newly appointed Swallows FC coach Steve Komphela says that they have a lot of hard work and some beefing up of the squad before the new season starts. Komphela, who was an assistant coach to Rulani Mokwena at defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns, was announced as the new Swallows coach earlier this week.
It was a surprise move that caught the SA football fraternity by shock. The much-travelled Komphela is a former Maritzburg United, Kaizer Chiefs, Free State Stars, Bloemfontein Celtic and Platinum Stars coach. A lot will be expected of him to bring back the glory days of the mu h adored and feared Beautiful Butcher Birds. Komphela will work alongside Musa Nyatama, who saved Swallows from the dreaded relegation chop last season, as his assistant.
“We are still coming back from a long lay-off, it is still the beginning of our preparations. Right now, we are working on mostly the physical aspect and you can see the players are starting to get into their groove, we still cannot have perfect conclusion on their physical aspects at this stage,” said Komphela on Tuesday.
“There’ still a lot of work to be done, there’s still a lot of acquisitions that we still have to make – not only from the players’ point of view only. We will need people to support the players, support them with regards to performance and they will need the tools to improve their play and see how best we can take the situation to the next level – it is important that we start adding the crucial aspect that will give us a proper base,” he added.
“We do not have timelines yet, but we do not have a lot of time because the season is going to start pretty soon. The first week of August is the competition phase and the preparation phase is now – there’s still a number of things that are not in place yet.
“We need to stabilize Swallows. Traditionally, they stepped aside and are no longer in the top four. They may take about five to six years, maybe we may not be here, but it is our ambition to compete and get to that top four again,” he added.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa.
