Football always Moloi’s first love
HE IS A BIG WWE FAN BUT FOR HIM THE BEAUTIFUL GAME WILL ALWAYS BE NO 1
Michaelson Gumede
Perhaps growing up loving WWE contributed to Baroka FC assistant coach Bushy Moloi’s fighting mentality, although he chooses to stay away from actual fist-fights.
Moloi told Phakaaathi he used to love wrestlers The Rock and The Undertaker, but his love for those two bigshot masters of the square ring was not enough to move him away from football, which he lives and breathes.
Moloi is the latest addition to Baroka FC’s technical team as he was roped in as the club’s assistant coach and as head coach of Bakgaga’s MultiChoice Diski Challenge side. He began life in both his new roles with victories against Highlands Park in the reserve league and a semifinal win over Bidvest Wits in the Telkom Knockout.
The soft-spoken coach was brought in from the Tshwane University of Technology’s Varsity Football side after he led the side to three finals and won the tournament twice. He said he is excited by his new role in the Absa Premiership and MDC.
“We have the legendary Wedson Nyirenda as our head coach who is brilliant and I think my responsibility is to learn from him. In terms of the development we have to work hard and the chairman likes the development. Everyone in the team wants to see both teams doing well this season,” he said.
“Football is all about being educated, that is why we go through courses and you have to understand that there will be lecturers and facilitators that will be telling you what to do and what not to do. I regard that as a blessing for me because I came here to learn. My ambition of being a head coach is something in the past,” he said.
Moloi was signed particularly for the work he has done in developing players, and he shares how he plans on managing his rookies.
“When you deal with aspiring athletes, the ones who want to play in the PSL, it is a serious challenge because most of them are being told by people outside that they are the best and they forget that we have to follow certain orders in order to deal with those types of attitude. It shows how important and how influential you can be as a coach and what you can do in terms of changing certain things that have been a difficulty in a team.”
Moloi went on to praise Vusi Sibiya, who he reunited with at Baroka. Sibiya is Moloi’s protégé as the two were together at TUT before the defender was snatched by Bakgaga at the start of the season.
“We need to close that gap and give people the opportunity to gradually learn and with that we are creating an opportunity for one to move to another team at any given time. This also deals with the flexibility of the head coach and the love of the chairman or the president of the team. I love to have Ntate Khurishi Mphahlele as the chairman of this team because he wants his team to be in the best situation and we are blessed to have him.
“He (Sibiya) is one excellent player and he is a disciplined boy who wants to learn every single time. When you have accepted that you want to learn and to lead, every single challenge that comes your way you can easily manage it.
“Coming from TUT and playing in the SAB League and playing in the Varsity Cup has actually assisted him because the Varsity Cup is a high-performance competition and they are able to deal with adapting much easier. That is why he has managed to fit in at Baroka and I am happy for him. He has been loyal and waited patiently for his chance.”
Moloi is aware of the level of impatience that most club bosses have and how they are not shy to wield the axe, but he is not fazed by the trigger-happy fingers as he plans to make the most of his stay at Baroka.
“A comfort zone is not a solution. Swim with the sharks and get out of the ocean unharmed. If you are harmed then it is still okay because you know that when you go to the ocean you are going to find sharks.
“I moved because the university offered me an opportunity to go and learn and I accepted it and maybe in the future when they have a professional team, I will be ready to assist or lead the team to success.”
My ambition of being a head coach is something in the past.