It
is nothing short of a baffle that it took Moroka Swallows 16 attempts to record
their first Premier Soccer League victory last season, flirting, unwaveringly,
with relegation. Yet, to this end, they find themselves competing for the
League honours. Of course, the side was refurbished with new players and a new
coach, who sauntered via the emergency entrance staircase to rescue a side that
was in the abyss. With six games still due to be endured and enjoyed, it is
clear that their meteoric rise is not a fluke. So what has made them tick this
season?
1.The Gordon Igesund
effect
Gordon
has seen it all. The veteran coach has won four titles with an assortment of
teams. He is on record saying that it could have been five or six titles for
him both with Ajax Cape Town, as the team fell victim to bad officiating from
the match officials whom, verily, confessed to the commission of enquiry of taking
bribes, in particular at crucial matches involving the Ikamva based outfit. At
the time the said team was on the gasp of annexing the Championship. I regard
him as the Jose Mourinho of South African football, albeit underrated at this
side of the hemisphere. It is part of his repertoire to make unfancied teams
shine and fancied teams shine towards the allure of a galaxy. As much as it is
a surprise to many, pensive observers who comprehend his quality and ability
are nowhere near to be bewildered. He has the pedigree. After a fight to avoid
the chop to the uneven pitches and dowdy second tier League, he took an excursion,
in the off-season, not to refresh his mind, but to refresh his coaching
methods, to Manchester. He spent invaluable time with Sir Alex Ferguson at
work, preparing for the season ahead.
2.Captain of Captains
I
doubt if it be the doing of any business negotiating skills of the managers of
the player which prompted Swallows to offer Lefa Tsutsulupa a new three year
contract at the age of 32. It is as quaint as a sea at the Inland region of
South Africa to behold the PSL clubs offering a player who has reached that
other side of 30 a three year contract! It doesn’t happen too often, if ever,
these days. The norm remains short-term contracts with option to renew and a
lot of clauses with trepidations of injury in the loom, as a consequence. It is
a statement of humongous gesture from the club. It speaks volumes of how
Tsutsulupa is held by the Club. To my point, with the likes of Macbeth Sibaya, Siyabonga
Nomvethe, Greg Etafia, Luvhengo Mungomeni, in their ranks, there are a lot
players with ‘personality’, who doesn’t need a push of the captain and they
also give that extra-motivation to the whole squad. In fact, there are a score
of senior players, whom, generally, carryout instructions of the coach with
aplomb, vis-a-vis, the youngsters. More on that later.
3. Players with more
point to prove
It
is considered, more casually, rather than solemnly, that teams that have a lot
to prove, tend to become a handful to play against. It is equally true, to the
individual players. So it shouldn’t be astounding to learn that, Swallows have
a lot of players who have something to prove, personally, due to one reason or
another. The David Mathebula’s and the Joseph Makhanya’s of this world have
added a new dimension to the Swallows machine in their drive to reach vaulting
heights. When they are driven by “a point to prove”, they inadvertently
converts the machine into a deluxe model with a fuel injected engine.
4. The ‘two by two
rule’
Proper
preparation prevents poor performance. Gordon, being old school, knows this
adage too fondly. Nothing should be left to chance if you want success. So the
guffer, aware that there was no real base for the squad he inherited at the
death last season, an overhaul in personnel was inevitable. And as ambitious as
he is, he knows that there is no real time to build a team in the PSL, else,
you will find yourself into the unemployment conveyor belt. You have to bring
results, with a deft eye on building for the future, if gradually. So what was
the plan? The plan was simple and yet effective. Get two more than satisfactory
players in every position, and no more. With two competitive players fighting
for the available one slot in the starting berth on every position, the players
will perform above limits. A healthy competition brings the best out of
players. That was a tactical master-stroke. It also eliminates the susceptibility
of egotistical attentions and indifference in the team, which seems to blot a
lot of talented sides.
It
is an axiom that the inconsistency in the league, is caused by, in the main,
teams being nomadic. A little too many teams, if not the majority, use
alternative venues regularly on the comfort of a home fixture (which
paradoxically defies the meaning of the words “alternative venue”), for reasons
beyond football logic. For reasons, more political and economical, they find it
expedient to zigzag around the country in different stadiums used as their
“home” games away from home, alas. Mathematically, some clubs, if not many,
find themselves having played ± 25 (including the obligated 15 away games) out
of 30 games away, instead of a routine 15 home and 15 away games at the end of
the season.
That concludes to be in a region of 83% of games played by a team
‘away’. What am I on about? Look, home ground advantage, in football terms, in
a league fashion or any other competition, cater to cushion the home team with
the advantage of playing AT HOME, at a stadium which they are used to, as
opposed to a travelling team, which obviously, will be disadvantaged by the
unfamiliarity of the stadia and the environment and so forth. So, suppose Jomo
Cosmos takes their home fixture to PE, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, against
Orlando Pirates, they forfeit their ‘home advantage’ and therefore,
effectively, it becomes a neutral venue. Not Moroka Swallows. They have played
all their home games at Dobsonville
Stadium. It has become a fortress. In fact, they last tasted defeat at
home only to Kaizer Chiefs in what was only the second game of the season!
Playing at your native home ground at all times gives you the edge.
6. Tried and Tested
Inside
the nest, the majority of the birds have seen the light of day on a score of occasions.
The line-up and also on the bench, like their coach, consist of veterans. You
have your Siyabonga Nomvethe’s, James Mayinga, Shere Lekgothoane, Macbeth
Sibaya, Mpho Maleka to mention but a few as a taste inside the pudding. Many
coaches would tell you that it is better to work with experienced players than
youngsters. They know what is expected. They can handle any situation with
nonchalance. Better still, Clive Barker also divulged that he took kind to
working with ‘older’ players (en route to winning the Afcon 1996), players who
are married, who have family responsibilities, as they respect their profession,
and give their all and they detach personal emotions away from the game. This
blend of players were/are and still will be crucial for Moroka Swallows’
resolve to greater heights.
Contrary
to popular belief, it is not only at glamorous teams that egos filter through
into the ranks. It happens at any team, regardless of the stature or the
illumination. No ‘big name’ at Swallows, although fans and the media would
fanatically create such players. No personality clashes. Ziltch. I was almost
tempted to talk about the stars of the team but the subconscious was quick to
point out that there are no such individual stars at Maswaiswai. Each and every
member of the squad is equally important to the team. With a ‘two by two rule’
cajoled by Igesund it has brought harmony and camaraderie to the side. Even
though there are stand out players, no one thinks of himself bigger than
anybody, let alone the team. An injury to one is an injury to all.
A bird’s eye view
into the Swallows’ Nest
Home wins 6
Away wins 5
Home Loss(es) 1
Away Loss 3
Home draw 5
Away draw 4
Points at home 23
Point away 19
Points tally = 42
*Swallows
have not lost at home since 17 August 2011 (their second games of the season)
against Kaizer Chiefs
*Lost
only four times. The second team in the League to have lost fewer number of
games.[The least, Sundowns]
*Last
lost (away) on 18 February 2012 against Kaizer Chiefs
*They
boast of the second highest goals scored in the League, 36, just one goal shy to
Mamelodi Sundowns
*They
are the second team in the League to have won the most number of games.[The
most, Pirates]
*In
the last five games they have collected the most number of points, only second
to Orlando Pirates, [amongst the quadruple title chasing pack]
*The
leading marksman in the PSL scoring charts reigns from their ranks – Siyabonga
Nomvethe [12]
By Thato Ismael
Bosoga
Twitter: @Adv_blair
Story: http://goo.gl/cwsOc
