Potchefstroom - It may be that he does not want to be part of another relegation battle next season, or that he simply thinks the grass is greener elsewhere. That much isn’t clear, but what was obvious was that Ernst Middendorp, the man responsible for Maritzburg United’s remarkable escape from relegation at the weekend, isn’t too keen to stick around.
“Why should I? My contract has come to an end and it is clear that I have done what they asked me to come here and do,” the coach said soon after the Team of Choice came from behind to beat Jomo Cosmos 3-1 on Saturday afternoon in an Absa Premiership relegation decider.
It was Cosmos, who came into the game with a one-point lead on Maritzburg, who will drop down to the National First Division instead.Give credit where it is due.
Middendorp, despite making a few enemies along the way by engaging in petty squabbles with his counterparts in the Premier League and even accusing Golden Arrows assistant coach Mandla Ncikazi of “kicking” him in the face recently, proved to be the right man for the job and was undoubtedly up to the task.
Who would blame him for not wanting to be part of that emotional rollercoaster next season when he now holds the honour of pulling off the greatest escape in the league’s history?
“I love Maritzburg,” was Middendorp’s response when pressed to elaborate further on his future. While the debate about whether the German-born mentor will stay or go rages on in the coming weeks, his influence in guiding the club to safety should not be ignored.
In his own words, Middendorp admitted that he could not fault those who doubted it was possible to avoid the drop because of the length of time the club spent as basement dwellers.
“For the past four months, I repeated several times that it would come down to the last game. We were in position 16 for 93 percent of the entire season. I think that is about 27 or 28 match days where our residence was in last place and in the end you are not relegated or going to the play-offs, but are safe and staying in the league. It will take a long time to see it happen again. This never happens in the PSL,” the coach gloated.
“Of course we were making it dramatic, but we had a very clear structure for this game by deciding at half-time that we will face the facts.
”The naked truth after the first 45 minutes, with Cosmos leading through a stunning long-rage strike from Linda Mntambo, was that Maritzburg would be relegated because University of Pretoria, another side in danger of being relegated, were leading 2-0 against Arrows at the Tuks Stadium some 200km away at the same time.
“I told them they have 45 minutes to show what they are capable of or otherwise it's over and they will no longer be in the PSL. When we scored the first goal (through substitute Mohau Mokate) I knew, because I am the coach, that in the following minutes we will make it happen (Evans Rusike added two more). I know my team.
“They have a huge character,” said the man who arrived to rescue a sinking ship on December 28 as their third coach of the campaign. To an outsider, Middendorp’s early substitution - bringing on midfielder Gregory Maasdorp for defender Tamsanqa Teyise in the 35th minute - would seem like the coach was pressing panic buttons and desperately searching for a miracle.
However, the former Kaizer Chiefs coach, ever so bluntly, said there was no shame in making a tactical call before half-time.
“What should I have done? You are a goal down. But no, I don’t think we panicked. It was part of trying to believe in what we were doing.
“I saw that the opponent went deeper and deeper into our half and we needed a player that can attack from those deep positions. That was the reason because I believe in Teyise and I think he is a fantastic player. It was not about trust,” Middendorp explained.
The Star