FOLLOWING ‘BIRDS’ LEADERSHIP CHANGE: HEAD COACH CALEB QUITS!

MBABANE - The recent leadership change at Mbabane Swallows, alongside the exit of the outgoing MC, has cast uncertainty over the future of Head Coach Caleb Ngwenya.  
According to reliable sources, the coach has verbally resigned from the team’s old Management Committee (MC), citing alleged unworkable conditions. “The players were instructed not to train for nearly three weeks until their salaries were disbursed.

“This situation severely hampered the coach’s ability to prepare for upcoming league matches. The players did not participate in the training sessions prior to facing Rangers, nor in preparation for the forthcoming game against Royal Leopard. Should the team underperform against Leopard, the coach would likely bear the brunt of the blame, prompting his decision to resign in order to protect his professional reputation,” the sources alleged.  This tumultuous episode unfolds as Swallows gear up to confront title challengers and closest challengers Royal Leopard at Mavuso Sports Centre, this Saturday, with kick-off scheduled for 5pm. When contacted for comment, Bachazile Ndlela, Princess Lungile’s Personal Assistant (PA),

Incomplete

It was reliably gathered that the handover was incomplete, as not all documents were surrendered to the new structure. It is believed more engagements are still needed to complete the transfer. A source within the new leadership alleged that other key documents that included audited financials are still pending. The source also further confirmed learning about the exit of the coach. Meanwhile, Coach Caleb neither denied nor confirmed his resignation, but enquired who had disclosed this information to the publication. “You know where issues like this should be addressed. Have you consulted the team’s PRO? If not, please do so and return to me,” he remarked. When informed later that individuals close to the team had confirmed his resignation, he stated that they had no further comment.

Having joined Mbabane Swallows in December 2022, Ngwenya led the team to triumph in the 2023/24 MTN Premier League. He also steered the team deep into several major cup finals, including the Ingwenyama Cup and the Trade Fair Cup. Furthermore, he successfully navigated the first preliminary round in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Champions League, falling just one position short of progressing to the group stages of the continental tournament, only to be defeated 8-0 on aggregate by Mamelodi Sundowns, the 2016 CAF Champions League winners.  

In the meantime, Acting President Absalom Ngwenya reached out to the publication to explain the rationale behind freezing club assets such as the clubhouse, sprinter and kit among other things. “While we do not oppose the change in leadership, we were dissatisfied with the manner in which it unfolded. Another faction instructed the players not to train unless their salaries were paid, leading them to turn against us and complicating our ability to manage the team effectively. The players ultimately resumed their services after being promised E2 000 each, ahead of the match against Rangers. This meant we had to finance our participation in games, which proved untenable, leading us to consider surrendering control of the team since ownership requests had been made since the beginning of the season.”  

Absalom articulated why they would retain control of the assets: “It’s not that we are unwilling to relinquish the assets, but we believe the approach taken was inappropriate for us to fully embrace the transition. The other faction encouraged the players to boycott training, inciting a revolt against us, which has eroded our trust. We cannot be assured that, if we transfer ownership of the assets, they will be properly maintained.”  However, the veracity of the claims about the alleged instruction to boycott could not be proven at the time of compiling this

He added: “We will inspect the assets and formally hand them over to Bishop Bheki Lukhele, who was instrumental in acquiring most of these possessions alongside our other partners. We are not resistant to transferring the assets, but no one has come forward with a clear request regarding this matter.”  In what appears to be a significant return, Princess Lungile has re-emerged as the new owner of Mbabane Swallows, five years after her previous resignation. During her prior tenure from 2018 to 2019, she estimated that the club required a monthly budget of E400 000 for its operations.

The footballing realm is no stranger to upheaval when new leadership assumes control. A prime example is the tumultuous narrative of Valencia CF, a La Liga team that underwent significant upheaval following a change in ownership, in 2014. When Singaporean businessman Peter Lim acquired a majority stake in Valencia CF, many supporters initially harboured optimism that this new investment would herald a bright era for the club.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: