Dolezar’s a coach, not a magician

Paul Dolezar has a tough task ahead of him, which is to save the Mpumalanga Black Aces from dreaded relegation. Last season the team was in a similar situation.

They signed more than 15 players to bolster their squad at the beginning of the Absa Premiership season. They had high hopes and dreams of seeing themselves among the top teams in the league, unfortunately things didn’t go as planned and the trigger-happy management fired the coach. The experienced Neil Tovey took over the coaching reins but he also didn’t stay too long because of poor results.

Now it’s Dolezar’s turn to try and work his magic. The coach, who is famously known for his comical antics on the touchline and outrageous post-match interviews, has been quick to act, signing experienced players like Benedict Vilakazi, Thabang Rooi and David Mathebula. But the start of his reign as the Aces’ coach has been a negative one — losing two matches. Things are definitely not looking good for him.

Earlier this week he made his intentions clear when he put 15 players on transfer. Whether that was a good idea remains to be seen. He is also in negotiations with some players with the hope of signing them to help his noble cause of saving Amazayoni from relegation. That is all well, but one simple truth in football — that doesn’t require rocket science to be proven — is that building a team takes time. Dolezar simply does not have time on his hands.

Aces made too many blunders early in the season. Their first mistake was to sign too many new players, which meant they created unrealistic hopes of immediate success. When that didn’t happen, the coach was fired, another big mistake and a weakness of many football bosses in this country. Tovey was shown the door before he could do anything, huge blunder.

Aces’ decision-makers dug their own grave, now they must lie in it.

Considering that they are at the bottom of the log at halfway mark, with a new coach and new players, I don’t see them surviving relegation this time around. Dolezar is a good coach but not a magician. Unless they make some drastic improvements and start getting positive results, preparing for life in the First Division will be their only option.