Yes, they are big shoes, but…
Tokelo Mokhesi: You’ve just played your first game of the season against Chippa United on Sunday. Firstly, what did you make of the team’s preparations for this season?
Jamie Webber: Everything went well and the vibe is nice. The coach changed a few things (during pre-season) and I think we as the guys were very confident ahead of this season.
TM: What are those few things coach Gavin Hunt changed?
JW: So, I would say, like, the first time when he came, he thoroughly explained to us how he wanted to do things, you know. These were his exact words: “I might not be able to make you guys better players, but I will teach you how to win”, and I think that’s what we needed, man. That’s what we were lacking from the past few seasons, (to) know how to win, know when to do it dirty, when to do it nicely. So, I think with the coach having that confidence to say that to us, it is a good sign with regards to all of us. We are really looking forward to the rest of the season.
TM: You seem raring JW: 100%. I’m full of confidence and I couldn’t wait to play the first game. Obviously, we buy into that confidence he gives us. Like I said, the vibe is better and the players are also confident in what they are doing and I can say we are more together as a team, we are more of a group now and everybody is speaking to everybody. Especially with the youngsters comof ing through, those us who have been here for a while, we help them and with them feeling comfortable, that means we will get the best out of them.
to go.
TM: What are your thoughts on Hunt as a coach, as he is known to be brutally honest with players?
JW: Yes, you are right when you say he is very honest and I think he does well with managing players and that’s very important in the team and for the team. Because he has won almost everything, he knows how to deal with pl ayers,soIfeellike when players buy into his philosophy, SuperSport (United) will do very well.
TM: Well, his approach and methods are said to be old-school by critics, that he is not really a fan of technology…
JW: Whether it be old-school or new school, the whole team wants to build a winning culture, so we will have to adapt and make certain compromises in our approach, from the way we train and in the real game.
TM: So, what’s the mandate for the coach and what is expected from you guys?
JW:
Yes, we definitely do have targets. So, for the past few seasons, we haven’t been making it into the top four and that’s a big deal for us. Even though Stan Matthews (the club’s CEO) came to see us recently and told us a top three finish is a priority, he actually said that Gavin couldn’t tell us what to do and set a target for us, which is to win the
league. Bringing in a coach like Gavin is a clear sign of our ambitious and goals because who doesn’t want to win things? So, no matter how we do it, we must just do it, ja.
TM: Matsatsantsa have made several signings, bringing in the likes of Grant Margeman, Ricardo Goss and Thabang Sibanyoni all on loan, with the biggest fish caught being Thulani Hlatshwayo.
JW: Looking at our squad, I have complete confidence in the boys. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter whether you are (Mamelodi) Sundowns, SuperSport, (Kaizer) Chiefs, or that you have that type of player, I feel it will go down to whoever wants it more. Yes, we will compete with the likes of Sundowns because although we have a young squad, we are hungry as players, we are willing to show our ability and put ourselves out there. So, I feel like on a day when the guys are ready to show up, we will do very
Deemed one of the underrated players around, Jamie Webhas ber been silently going about his business for the last seven years since he got his breakthrough at Vasco da Gama as a 17-year-old. Now a SuperSport United workhorse, he has been has tipped by club CEO Stan M atthews to pick up the mantle and take over in the heart of midfield this season followsome ing key departures in recent times. Webber, who made his Bafana Bafana debut back in 2017 strongly believes this is the season he will come out of his shell and shine brightest. In this interview with Soccer Laduma’s Tokelo M okhesi,the Cape Townoutlines born lad his goals for the current campaign,reveals Gavin H unt’s expectations, and shares his thoughts on a big-name arrival and an equally high-profile departure. well. As for Tyson, he is a well-known player and he is very experienced. Also, he can be the one to teach us, you know, to lead us in that sense because I mean, he has been captain of Wits and the national team, so who wouldn’t want to learn from a player like him? We will learn a lot from him and maybe we won’t understand the way the coach does some things, but maybe he can explain in a better way what the coach wants from us. So, I think it’s very good to have a player like that, who has worked under Gavin for the longest time and who has his experience.
TM: On the flip side of the coin, you guys also lost a big player in Ronwen Williams, who’s moved to Downs.
JW:
Big loss for the club, tough one. Williams was a big influence and the most consistent player throughout the years. I mean, he’s the best keeper in South Africa, you know, so it will be a loss for us, but it will also be in another way an opportunity for our other keepers to step up and now show themselves and prove themselves that they are good enough. He holds the record of playing the most amount of games in a row, so I feel like with him leaving, it’s not such a bad thing. It’s an opportunity for the other goalkeepers. So, instead of looking at (the fact that) we lost a good player, I feel like we should look at positives to say it is an opportunity for another player to step up.
TM: Now back to you. What are your targets for the season?
JW:
I want to score more goals and get into the right positions to score and ultimately help the team. I want to build that desire to win and a desire and determination to get into the box to score, to be arrogant on the ball. So, I feel like I need to work on that part of my game. I can score goals, but I haven’t scored in a long time, so I need to be more arrogant and be more determined to get into the box when the cross is coming in or whatever. But for me personally, mostly I need to score goals.
TM: Having been with the club for a while now, are you happy with the
progress made? JW:
Yes, I can definitely say I’m happy. I’ve learned a lot of things over the years. I’ve gotten stronger physically and mentally, and that can only help me in the future, whether I move or stay here. It’s a good thing that the players around you… some players come and go and I learned a lot from Dean Furman, Bongani Khumalo and those guys, so I mean, to also be a role model to the younger boys, I’m happy with how I have grown.
TM: SuperSport have lost several good midfielders over the last couple of years… Furman, Teboho Mokoena and recently Sipho Mbule. Is that pressure for you as now all eyes will likely be on you to step up?
JW:
I will just take it one game at a time, you know. I mean, there was pressure on me when Tebza left, before Sipho left, that now I have to fill in the shoes. But I don’t think I need to put myself under any pressure because I feel like I am good enough to do better to help the team like they helped the team, you understand? So, I don’t really feel under pressure.
TM: Right. JW:
Ja, like, I don’t feel I have to fill Tebza’s or Sipho’s shoes. Yes, they are big shoes, but I think all I need to do is focus on myself and that way I’ll become a much better player because I think if I were to put pressure on myself, I would definitely not enjoy playing. So, I decide not to put pressure on myself, even though the club might. But for me personally, I feel like I don’t have to put so much pressure on myself. At the moment, I’m happy at SuperSport. I can’t speak for next season yet because I mean, we don’t know what the future holds, you know. So, for now, yeah, definitely looking forward to the rest of the season.
TM: At some point, you were linked with Kaizer Chiefs. Was there some fire behind that smoke?
JW:
I heard about the rumours, and knowing that people are watching you gives you the confidence. I’m grateful they are watching me and that I can work towards something. So, I am grateful, but my ambition is to play for Bafana Bafana and I feel like I am knocking on the door. It didn’t happen last year unfortunately, but definitely, in the future, I will push for that.
TM: Would you say players leaving SuperSport for Sundowns has minimised the club’s chances of winning a trophy over the last couple of years?
JW: No, I wouldn’t say that because I feel like even though a good player had left, we’d still have good players to fill in the void, but we just couldn’t reach the end goal. Dean left, Tebza left, Sipho left and recently Williams, but I feel like we do have players that can fill in and do well, you know. But I feel like we just didn’t reach our goals, but I am confident going into the new season. The fans can also expect hard work from me. I will give my all and score goals and provide more assists.
“So, I feel like I need to work on that part of my game.”
“I don’t think I need to put myself under any pressure because…”
TM: Thank you for your time, Jamie. Best of luck against AmaZulu on Wednesday and TS Galaxy on the weekend.
JW: Cool. Thanks for the chat, Sir. Take care. I would like to ask the fans to believe in us and believe in our coach because we are a very confident bunch, even though I know some of the fans are saying we are letting all our players go to Sundowns, you know. So, I just ask them to believe in us as a team. We will bring home something.
Sello, thanks for being with us this week. You’ve recently left Sekhukhune United, having also turned out for Highlands Park previously. What do you have for the Soccer Laduma readers in the way of funny stories? A lot of the stories I can share are from the time I spent with Highlands Park. Jerry Msane was one of the funny characters we had in the team. You know what he would do? He would just start to whistle and dance while we are in the video room.
Ha, ha, ha, that’s quite bizarre, especially because in some African cultures, whistling while indoors is considered a no-no! So, why was he doing this?
We would be in a very serious video analysis room and he would do that out of the blue, although we weren’t sure why. Hectic, I am telling you, my brother! But I think there is no character bigger than Mahlatse Makudubela. Even coach Owen da Gama and (Allan) Freese knew that he was the craziest player at the club, so they tolerated him. They knew all the characters in the squad, so they were aware that he was one of the crazy ones in the team.
What would he get up to?
One of the funniest ones I remember was when we had to report for camp as usual and he popped in with fireworks. You see those 100 shooter fireworks?
Yes. Those are the ones we often see people buying for New Year’s Eve festivities.
So, as we were preparing for training, he started shooting randomly in the dressing room and everybody was shocked because they did not expect it. Everyone did not know what was happening, but after that, everyone was laughing because we were all wondering, “Who would do something like that?” The thing about him is that he had qui tea few moments that would always make us laugh. I remember there was a time when we were coming back from Cape Town after playing a game. So, while we were waiting for our bags on the carousel, we saw him coming out of that thing with the bags.
How is that possible? You’d have to be an employee at the airport to actually get into that area, ha, ha, ha. Ha, ha, ha, he is quite the character that guy. We were asking ourselves how he managed to do that. Those are some of the moments that I’m talking about with regards to him. The funny thing is no one saw how and when he got in there. We were waiting for our bags and then next thing Skudu
5 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT MOTSEPE
• He describes himself as a ‘very shy’ person.
• The midfielder is a Christian.
• He has three older sisters and a younger brother.
• Although his chosen career requires of him to be ‘tough’, he concedes to being a bit of a ‘mama’s boy’.
• The 28-year-old regards himself as a confident person. was there coming with our bags. Then we all started laughing because we were only expecting to see our bags, not Skudu. Even those other people who were waiting for their bags started laughing at him because no one exdo pected that he would something like that, ha, ha, ha.
Ha, ha, ha. Surely, they were surprised how someone managed to do that because it’s not something that looks too easy to pull off, especially with so much security at airports. I just remembered this one time when Skudu came to training wearing a suit. Can you imagine? He had a suit on. It was clean formal wear. He had the suit and a laptop bag. Then he got to the dressing room and he put down the laptop bag nicely. We were all there, thinking that he was going to take out a laptop. When he opened it, he took out boots and his tights were nicely folded.Whenitcomes to things like that, he is one of the best, ha, ha, ha. guys must moment along people with in offices and
not at training, after all.
Ha, ha, ha. What’s interesting about Skudu is that he is not someone who talks a lot. But ke tsotsi (he is naughty). He is always making funny comments and making jokes. That’s how he is. I think you will see him talking a lot once he is close to you, but otherwise he is someone who does not open up too much.
Well, you know what, that’s strange what you’ve just said because he actually looks like someone who is always talking and playing pranks on teammates.
Ha, ha, ha, quite the opposite! At Sekhukhune, one of the funny characters was Prince Nxumalo. That guy would do anything not to speak English. That guy would struggle with English, but sometimes he would insist on speaking it. He is one of the guys I can remember from there.
Ha, ha, ha, he’s not named Prince for nothing. Remember Prince Harry? Prince Charles? Prince William? Then there’s Prince Nxumalo. Thank you so much for your time, Sello. It’s been a pleasure. Good luck in your quest to find a new club. Thank you, I enjoyed sharing the stories.