Stellenbosch FC coach Steve Barker says they’ll fight tooth and nail to get their Betway Premiership campaign back on track, although they will use the upcoming international break to reflect on where they’ve gone wrong.
Stellenbosch have endured a mixed start to the season. They qualified for their second successive CAF Confederation Cup group stage on their second attempt.
However, not everything has been rosy in the league. They are languishing at the foot of the log with just nine points after 12 matches, and Marumo Gallants humiliated them 4-0 to eliminate them from the Carling Knockout quarter-final.
Given that Stellies have been a selling team – offloading some of their best players to either local clubs or overseas suitor – it seems Barker cannot simply wave a magic wand to produce the next gems or buy underrated players who become talismans for the club.
Barker, speaking after their 2-0 loss to Siwelele at home on Tuesday night, says they won’t despair in trying to return Stellenbosch to the level they were at – among the chasing pack – in the last three seasons.
“I’ve been around long enough, and I know deep in my heart that this team does not belong where we are, but we have to accept it first of all,” Barker explained.
“That’s our responsibility because we’ve got ourselves into this situation. Therefore, it’s our responsibility, starting with me, and then everyone throughout the club – the team, the players – to find ways to be the Stellenbosch we are known to be.
“We are fighters, and we will continue to fight. Hopefully, before the turn of the year, we will have some positive results, and then we can reassess where we are and what we need to do after the long break in January.”
Stellenbosch are set to have a breather in the next few weeks. The international break starts on Monday and will last two weeks, during which Bafana Bafana will face Zambia in an international friendly at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium next Saturday as part of their preparation for the upcoming AFCON next month.
And that’s not all. The league will be temporarily suspended next month until late January due to the upcoming continental showpiece, which will be hosted in Morocco.
Barker has welcomed the breaks, saying they’ll give the team time to reflect and work on finding solutions to their challenges.
“The (FIFA international) break probably comes at a good time. This was our sixth game in 18 days, with a lot of traveling in between, so it has been a challenging period.
“It will continue to be challenging with our CAF campaign, so we can’t look for any excuses. It’s about finding solutions to our league form, which has to change immediately.
“…This will be a period of reflection and refreshment, and with two league games left for the year, we have to come back and fight for points in those matches.
“There is a saying that you can’t keep doing the same things and expect different results. Right now, we have to find ways to do things differently – whether it’s our approach off the field, coaching sessions, selection of the team, or formations – we have to freshen things up.”
