IT WAS NERVY, EXCITING IN EQUAL MEASURE

 If I wanted to have an easy job… I would have stayed at Porto – beautiful blue chair, the Uefa Champions League trophy, God, and after God, me,” said the ‘Special One’ Jose Mourinho from his minefield of quotable quotes when he took the England Chelsea job in 2004.

MTN league award-winning coach, Caleb Ngwenya would most probably say the same words now about leaving the coaching job at Vovovo FC to take the hot seat at the ‘Correctional Services’ side at the start of the season. Ten months after leaving Vovovo FC he has had his first league gold medal as one of the most experienced coach in the Kingdom of Eswatini.

When he joined the green and white ensemble, the mandate was clear – BRING BACK THE LEAGUE TROPHY. In extraordinary circumstances, he not only turned Green Mamba’s lemons into lemonade, with the first round triumph which had a E300 000 sweetener, but eclipsed Royal Leopard to the E1 million first prize cheque to land the Holy grail of local football with the Correctional Services side.

It was not an easy feat especially after a mini-slump at the start of the new year threatened to unravel the best laid plans for ‘Inyoka Eluhlazana’ as fellow security forces rivals Royal Leopard steamrolled ahead. In the end, as close as the margins suggests –a mere two goal difference – proved good enough to land the second MTN league crown since they also won the 2010/11 trophy in similar circumstances. Back then they pipped long time leaders Manzini Wanderers – tied on 50 points – with just a mere three goals.
Sports Editor, Lwazi Dlamini analyses all the 14 premier league teams as he best knows how on what has been a nervy and exciting premier league 2018/19 season:

GREEN MAMBA

Unlike the green mamba they are named after, which is shy and reclusive in nature, preferring to escape any trouble rather than confront, Caleb Ngwenya’s charges literally bulldozed their way to glory when the time demanded. Yes, they went on a mini-slump at the beginning of the year after a trailblazing start to the season in which they bagged the first round cheque of E300 000 but when they got their act together, they became unstoppable. The turning point was on March 27 when they beat the self-same Royal Leopard 2-0 at Mhlume’s Nsukuwansuku Stadium to cut their lead to just two points with four games remaining.

Player of the season: Thokozani Mkhulisi - While captain Banele ‘Makonese’ Dlamini is a highly favoured individual for leading by example as captain fantastic, Mkhulisi’s 12 clean sheets and conceding 12 goals in the whole league campaign is a class act. He was the rock of Gilbrata in Green Mamba’s last line of defence and his experience came in handy.

Best signing: Gomezgani Gondwe - Not just because he scored the all-important winning goal last Sunday, which literally won the league championship but his assists whenever he came in as a substitute proved that Swallows’ loss was Green Mamba’s gain.
The Good: Bouncing back to win the league. After their mini-slump in which Leopard then took the top spot, Green Mamba never gave up and kept their eyes on the ball to finally land the championship.
The Bad: Musa Dlamini’s goal dry spell. After a blistering first half of the season in which he netted nine goals, he went for three games without finding the net at a time when his team needed him the most.
The Ugly: Top striker Phinda ‘Phindrix’ Dlamini’s love-and-hate relationship with coach Caleb Ngwenya threatened to cause turmoil within the club. In the end, the differences were sorted and the gangly striker came back to make a meaningful contribution to the cause.

ROYAL LEOPARD

There is no doubt Royal Leopard have bounced back and would look back at the 2018/19 season as a missed opportunity though. They had the league title right in their own hands and then let it slip at a crucial time. The devastating 2-0 loss to eventual champions Green Mamba and then the deflating 1-all draw to Matsapha United meant they were bound to end with the wooden spoon. So near yet so far.
Player of the season: Lungelo Tsabedze - When Barry Steenkamp was nursing his long-term injuries, the gifted youngster carried the police side on his tiny shoulders with scintillating displays and wondrous goals.
Best signing: Charles Edoa-Nga – The Cameroonian striker proved to be a best buy for Leopard with his incisive off-the-ball runs and good finishing. His debut goal proved he was a star quality.

The Good: After below par performances for two seasons after winning the league title in the 2015/16 season, Leopard have come of age – competing in almost all three competitions and then losing the league title sadly on the final day of the season.
The Bad: Finishing second in the title race. There is no new way of saying it is mind-boggling that Leopard let go of a five-point lead with five games remaining. You could see the deflation in their faces at the final whistle against Matsapha United in the 1-all draw at Somhlolo National Stadium, in the second last match that they knew they had blown it.
The Ugly: How do you lose two trophies in a space of two weeks? The EswatiniBank Cup final loss to Young Buffaloes might have had a psychological blow on their league title aspirations as they went on to only settle for a deflating draw with Matsapha United in the next match.

YOUNG BUFFALOES

On an overall analysis, the army side can look back on the season and be proud of themselves. Not only because they made a an eye-watering E2.8 million this season in prize monies but for a consistent display in the league. They can look back, partly blame the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) for insisting to fixture them away at Killarney sports ground against Malanti Chiefs despite missing seven key players who were with the national team. It led to a deflating 2-all draw with Malanti Chiefs, which went a long way in ending their title aspirations.
Player of the season: Sandile Gamedze – What’s there to say that has not been said about ‘Saviola’? All Buffaloes best moments revolved around him. What a season he has had! A strong contender for the Player of the Year.
Best signing: Ali Matse – Signed from Manzini Wanderers he came in and made a huge impact.

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