Etafia can only hope the stars align for struggling Igugu Lekapa
CAPE TOWN ALL STARS caretaker coach Greg Etafia has come out in support of his beleaguered squad after they suffered their fifth defeat of the season this past weekend.
All Stars lost 1-0 to Mbombela United in Nelspruit on Sunday, and are second last on the NFD standings.
Former Nigeria and Moroka Swallows goalkeeper Etafia said his team performed well despite the loss.
“It was a good performance, but we lost and that’s the sad part. The boys are trying hard and we’ll improve the results soon,” he said.
“They played very well and they played with structure. Everything was good and they created chances. Everything with regards to how we want to play and our philosophy was good. We just need to score goals and win games now. That’s what we want.”
Asked why he believed All Stars lost despite putting in a “good performance”, Etafia replied: “There is nothing that went wrong. We didn’t score, which is normal in the game.
“It’s something that we need to work on, but we played well and the guys are trying their best. We are just hoping to turn the corner. We need to win games. We are doing everything right.”
The fixture was Etafia’s third game in charge, following a 1-1 draw against Stellenbosch FC and a goalless outing against Witbank Spurs earlier this month. He is the fourth man to lead the club, in what has been a tumultuous season.
All Stars started the campaign with Mlungisi “Professor” Ngubane as head coach, but he resigned in September after losses in the first two games.
Assistant coach Dylan Deane subsequently took charge for one match, before Patrick Mabedi was appointed at the end of September.
But Mabedi would resign after just two weeks and two games, citing differences with Deane and a desire to hire his own support staff.
Deane stepped in once again and took charge of two games before his contract was terminated, shortly before the Stellenbosch FC fixture, along with physiotherapist Fareed Cassiem and fitness coach Riedoh Berdien.
All Stars are set to name a new permanent coach in the new year, after the festive season break. Etafia was non-committal on whether he would be interested in taking up the position on a permanent basis.
Igugu Lekapa have three NFD fixtures left this year, starting with 10th-placed Real Kings at Athlone Stadium on Friday.