DURBAN - For some coaches in the Absa Premiership, the ultimate goal is to protect their jobs but that is not the case for Maritzburg United tactician Eric Tinkler.
The Team of Choice are flourishing under Tinkler’s tutelage. Last season he saved Maritzburg from relegation. This season they reached the Telkom Knockout final where they lost to Sundowns and they are currently sixth on the log. Tinkler is yet to finish two seasons as the head coach of any side in the Premier Soccer League. He took over the coaching reins from Muhsin Ertugral last year in January and hasn’t looked back.
“You always want stability in life. That’s why everybody tries to achieve. It is stability. Be it in my job or in your job. You want to create that stability but in professional sports that is very difficult to be brutally honest. You gonna win some and you gonna lose some. We as coaches will take blame for that. I don’t really think about it. I think about doing my job,” Tinkler said yesterday.
The former Bafana Bafana midfielder started his head coaching career at Orlando Pirates but could only last for one season.
After his departure from the Sea Robbers, he joined Cape Town City for one season. Tinkler then joined SuperSport United where he also stayed for one season. At Chippa United, he was fired a few months after taking up his post.
“The way I do my job here at Maritzburg is not different to the way I used to do my job when I was an assistant coach at Bidvest Wits. Was it the same at Chippa United? Yes. Was it the same at Orlando Pirates? Yes. Was it the same at Cape Town City? Yes. I go to sleep well. I sleep comfortable knowing that I’ve done everything I can.
“If I sit and worry about if I have a future at the club, then I won’t focus. I can’t worry about things that I have no control over. I worry about the things that I do have control over,” he added.
Maritzburg will entertain Stellenbosch FC tomorrow at 8pm in an Absa Premiership showdown at Harry Gwala Stadium.
“You are only as good as your last game. That’s the harsh reality of it. I don’t know how long will I stay here but we will see. I know that in my career, I’m gonna be fired again. That’s inevitable because that’s how the game is. Gone are the days where you see coaches have jobs for 23 years. It doesn’t exist anymore.”