DURBAN – Lamontville Golden Arrows don’t need extra motivation as they gear up to visit Witbank Spurs in the last 16 of the Nedbank Cup on Saturday at 3pm.
Spurs play in the National First Division (NFD) and are led by former Bafana Bafana coach Ephraim “Shakes” Mashaba. Spurs stunned Maritzburg United in the last 32 of the Nedbank Cup.
Arrows' Steve Komphela believes that he doesn’t need to motivate his troops for the clash against the minnows.
“If you work based on motivation you're going to have a serious problem of consistently motivating people. There has to be principles and values of work ethic. They must always be there whether they are playing the game of dices or they are playing cards.
They must have that embedded in their system. Motivation is not a big thing because our preparations are the same," Komphela responded to a question about how he would motivate his players against an NFD side.
Complacency can creep in when players meet small teams.
Lamontville Golden Arrows coach Steve Komphela doesn't need to motivate his troops. Photo: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix
“I strongly believe that how you do one thing, is how you do everything. If in the morning you wake up and you don’t do your bed, don’t expect to come to work and find your desk clean. When someone’s desk is dirty, you must anticipate that they did not do their bed. Small principles as human beings determines what values you subscribe to.
“Is it honesty, integrity, respect or professionalism? Whether the opponent is minor or major, you carry those with you so that you don’t need any motivation," he added.
Komphela knows they face a serious challenge against Mashaba.
“His character and personality - forget about the pedigree and experience which is immense - bra Shakes is a winner and worse we’ve seen the energy that you've been getting from Witbank Spurs in the matches that they have played under him. They can be direct, they play with purpose and those are the characteristics of bra Shakes.
"Bra Shakes has always been the winner and it reflects on his teams, which then tells you that it is not going to be an easy match, but we are looking forward to it,” said Komphela.