Thami counts on big bro Siya
NEW Chippa United captain Thami Sangweni will have his older brother Siyabonga on speed dial whenever he needs advice on being a leader. Siyabonga, now retired, captained Orlando Pirates a few seasons ago and has been giving his younger brother some tips on how to make sure Chippa players respect him as their skipper. The younger Sangweni has taken over the captaincy from Nigerian James Okwuosa, whose move to Pirates fell through. “There’s a lot of responsibility that I have to take. We talk about it now and then, and he has given me some advice,” said the 27-year old. “There’re a lot of things we talk about, but the most important thing he said to me is that I should keep the discipline in the team. It starts with me and the others will follow. In the team we also have James and Andile (Mbenyane). They have been captains of this team before and they are also advising me.” After finishing in sixth place in the last campaign – their highest finish in the PSL – Chippa believe they can break into the top five in the coming season. “We have to do better. Last season our target was to be in the top eight and we did well to finish number six. This season we cannot be number six or number seven. We cannot go backwards. We have to improve our game and make sure we get every point we play for.” To challenge for a spot in the top five, Chippa have to make sure they hold on to the services of coach Dan Malesela. The Eastern Cape-based club has been playing some attracting football under Malesela’s guidance and they are going to be one of the most feared teams in the league, should they carry on playing the slick passing game we saw last term.