JOHANNESBURG – Life for Moroka Swallows back in the Premier Soccer League bitter-sweet on Saturday afternoon, and coach Zeca Marques gave a sober analysis about their chances.
Once part of the traditional big three in South African football, the Dube Birds went from Premiership heavyweights to minnows when they were relegated to the second-tier division in 2015. From thereon, things turned from bad to worse, as they were relegated to the third-tier, the ABC Motsepe League - where they campaigned for two seasons.
But through the efforts of Gauteng MEC for education Panyaza Lesufi, who wooed businessman David Mogashoa to buy the NFD status of Maccabi FC, the Dube Birds are back in the PSL this term hoping to fly high in the GladAfrica Championship.
“We need to perform with a 100 percent effort, each and every day,” said Marques after their 1-1 draw with TS Sporting at Dobsonville Stadium on Saturday. “This is a challenging task, and the players need to adapt. It’s not easy coming from the ABC, where you were right at the bottom.
So, with the new club and the hype, it will be challenging. It’s great for the players but they have to adjust with the expectations. (But) realistically it will be part of their growth as players.”
Marques was positive about their aspirations.
“We’ll try to push as much as we can,” he said. “We are building from this game onwards. We have to push and try to do well in the (Nedbank) Cup and from there we build. We have inherited this team and still have players that we can bring in. But it is what it is at the moment.
Thanks to the Maccabi management for keeping the team together. Imagine if we were trying to put the team together in the last two weeks, that wouldn’t work.”
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/capeumoyafc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@capeumoyafc @Lesufi @DavidMVM #WhoLetTheBirdsOut pic.twitter.com/EvGi7JMB3r
— MorokaSwallowsFC (@Moroka_Swallows)
While Saturday’s draw with Sporting was unfavourable for a side that’s working its way back to glory days, there was a great response about their return from their supporters. The grandstand was filled to the rafters by their elderly supporters who came out in numbers to witness “Swallows the legacy”.
“It was magnificent,” Marques said about the atmosphere. “It was like the old days when we played the big teams, the (Kaizer) Chiefs, (Orlando) Pirates and (Mamelodi) Sundowns of those days, the stadium was packed like this.
"The ambiance was brilliant, and very festive, I am happy with that purpose but I am disappointed that we didn’t win it. It could have been better if we won it.”
Meanwhile, Swallows are still campaigning in the second-tier as Maccabi FC as they await the approval of the change name by the PSL.
However, they’ll be out for their first full points when they travel to Cape Town to face Cape Umoya United in their next encounter.