Swallows back on track, says stand-in coach

Following Swallows’ 1-1 draw with Maritzburg United at Dobsonville Stadium on Saturday, assistant coach Fani Madida feels they are on the road to recovery in the DStv Premiership.

Swallows have endured a poor run with only a single victory recorded this season and this cost former coach Brandon Truter his job.

Madida was in charge for the first time, with new coach Dylan Kerr still waiting for his work permit, and was satisfied with the performance of his players and hopes to build on that going forward.

“With the resilience we showed you could see it is a work in progress. There is a big light at the end of the tunnel,” Madida told the club’s media department.

“We did well, we fought and that’s what we needed to do because Maritzburg are a team that fights and if they come and you allow them to bulldoze you, they will win the game.

“Most of the time, they will win the game by standard situations and fortunately for them, we conceded just before the break from a corner kick – it was a crucial time and it was only two minutes to go before halftime.

“Those are the times when teams are dangerous, but we came back in the second half and we fought. I think they visited our 18 area four or five times.

“They decided on playing counterattack, but we were well aware of what they were going to do.”

Swallows are still bottom of the log with nine points from 13 matches.

Meanwhile, Royal AM coach John Maduka was disappointed with his players’ performance after their goalless draw with AmaZulu, also on Saturday, at Moses Mabhida Stadium.

“Look, it was not us in that match. I think defensively we did well. We managed to keep a clean sheet, but from the midfield going forward, I think we were not good enough,” Maduka said.

“So many players were off and when you have six players that are not in the game, it is difficult to win. That’s what happened. Every time we were in possession, we could not even make four or five passes together.

“In the final third, we were not sharp, no runs going forward and no shots at goal. How do you score if you can’t take shots at goal?"

Results:

Stellenbosch 1-1 Sundowns;

Swallows 1-1 Maritzburg;

Chippa 1-2 Arrows;

AmaZulu 0-0 Royal.