Hunt builds for today and tomorrow
DON’T BLINK. Because if you do, you might just miss how Gavin Hunt is assembling a Bidvest Wits team that is shaped to not only win the Absa Premiership but also defend it like he did with SuperSport United, when he guided the club to three league titles in a row.
The signings of Bongani Khumalo and Gabadinho Mhango in this transfer window might have grabbed the headlines, like when the club broke the bank to bring in Buhle Mkhwanazi in July two years ago and when Hunt reunited with Daine Klate and Elias Pelembe. But away from the fanfare, the mentor promoted youngsters like Markus Lecki, Paseka Seneke, Phakamani Mahlambi, Reeve Fosler and Liam Jordan to the first team while the national Under-17 duo of Sibongakonke Mbatha and Keanu Cupido are training with the Clever Boys.
The trend is the same as when Hunt was in the capital, he started building the club with a strong defence, added experienced campaigners and enough youth to ensure that the transition is easy when the old players age or leave. It’s a trick that Kaizer Chiefs missed en route to winning the league in style last season, which is why they’re struggling in their efforts to retain it. Forget the very strong starting lineups Hunt fields, think about this young and alternative XI – Jethren Barr, Fosler, Cupido, Lecki, Tebogo Moerane, Seneke, Mbatha, Vincent Pule, Ben Motshwari, Liam Jordan and Mahlambi.
“Just imagine when we finish this season on top and Wits are champions,” Khumalo said. “Imagine what that will do to these kids here. The experience, just being around that. The training and the intensity, seeing the work ethic. It plants a seed. You’ve got one generation that is full of belief, experience and another generation that sees that and wants that. It creates the hunger and continuation. That just shows you the kind of coach Gavin is and shows you why at SuperSport we were able to win the league back-to-back. Remember that throughout those seasons we lost big players but we still managed to get there.”
The drive for Hunt to bring the title to Milpark this season is huge not only because of the money invested in the club but also because the coach is in his final season of his three-year contract. There is an option to extend that to another year but that is likely to be determined by how the club fares this campaign where they are chasing the league along with Mpumalanga Black Aces and Mamelodi Sundowns. Aces are the dark horses in that race with all eyes on Hunt and Pitso Mosimane’s Brazilians. Klate – who was given his professional debut by Mosimane and won three league titles under Hunt – knows better than any player what drives these two mentors.
“Both coaches are hard to please, first and foremost,” Klate said. “They have a winning mentality which is why they have done so well. They work very, very hard at their jobs. They have a lot in common in the way they go about their work and the way they carry themselves. But they have very different playing styles.”