Mokwena ‘disappointed’ with Erasmus confrontation

The Carling Black Label Cup was a football extravaganza this past Saturday, with Mamelodi Sundowns showing their dominance as they beat Orlando Pirates 4-0 in the final. In the final, the Buccaneers had to soldier on with 10-man after Thapelo Xoki was sent off for administering a rash tackle on Haashim Domingo, which irked Masandawana’s bench.

Former Sundowns striker, Kermit Erasmus, who has found a new lease of life at the Sea Robbers after a frustrating spell at Chloorkop, was seen having a go at Downs head coach Rulani Mokwena. The Downs mentor was not impressed at all with Erasmus’ utterances towards him, even though Mokwena chose to keep the content of the conversation to himself.

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“It was disappointing because the tackle was not something you want to see from an opponent, it was career-threatening and situations like that should not be applauded. I was disappointed in how he spoke to me and I felt I did not deserve that from him,” said Mokwena.

“Maybe that is why I feel bittersweet about the incident because I know what the club has done for him and I know what I have done for him personally. I don’t want to speak about some of the things but I suppose that is what life is about and we take it on the chin and we move on,” he added.

“We have to give credit to the club in its way of investing so much in youth development. The resources that the club pours into youth development is one that shows that the club is run from a self-less perspective. We always see how the leadership always try to assist and give back to communities and that type of leadership runs through the club structures, the academy and the ladies team.

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Mokwena has brought a number of new faces into the Sundowns senior team, with some of them getting action and holding down their own. However, Mokwena refuses to take all the credit when it comes to the development of youngsters at the club.

“To take sole responsibility for seeing these young boys doing well would be unfair from my side. There is a lot of work that is done behind the scenes with the sporting director, Flemming Berg, who is trying to pull together the different parts of the club. And a lot of credit has to go to the youth coaches,” he added.