Stellenbosch FC coach Steve Barker has taken on the challenge of shouldering the hopes and dreams of an entire community ahead of the club’s first-ever cup final.
Stellies will come to blows with TS Galaxy at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in the deciding match of the Carling Knockout Cup on Saturday (3pm kick-off).
The Cape Winelands has been home to some of the brightest young talents around the country in several different sporting codes for many years, and is now beginning to place its imprint on the football scene.
Now in their fifth year in the South African top-flight, Stellies are not only in line to claim their first piece of silverware, but also hold a Caf Confederation Cup spot on the DStv Premiership standings.
Speaking to the media yesterday ahead of this encounter, Barker – a Nedbank Cup finalist with the University of Pretoria in 2009 – has expressed great excitement from not only his camp, but the whole Stellenbosch area as thousands of the club’s followers hope to make history.
“Firstly, there’s massive excitement. Stellenbosch is traditionally a bastion of rugby, with a number of players going on to become Springboks, having schooled there,” he said.
“So, for the town to have our team playing in the final (is huge) for the fans, the community around, the players and their families are also very excited.
“It’s not often you get to the final, and when you get to the final, you’ve got to make the most of it because there’s no guaranteeing that you’ll be in a final again – so that’s heightened the excitement level.”
Stellenbosch have held a clear dominance over this fixture for the past five years, having never lost to the Rockets in the 10 meetings they’ve had in that period.
Barker and his men have won eight and drawn two of these games against Galaxy, the most memorable one ending in a 6-3 triumph in the Nedbank Cup last season.
Stellies are also currently on a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions, winning eight of those, while keeping seven clean sheets in the process.
IOL Sport