CASTLE Lager Premier Soccer League coaches have been forced to rearrange training programmes as the league is now set to start on March 21.
SAKHELENI NXUMALO SPORTS CORRESPONDENT
The 2015 season had been set to kick off on March 9, but has been moved forward. Coaches who spoke to Southern Eye Sport said they have had to restrategise and plan accordingly.
Newly-promoted Tsholotsho Football Club head coach Lizwe Sweswe said there was a danger of players getting rusty.
“Usually we do an eight-week pre-season programme and expect the league to start in the ninth week and when that does not happen there is always the danger of players getting relaxed or demotivated,” Sweswe said.
Tsholotsho will kick off the season with an away match at Harare City before hosting Highlanders at Barbourfields Stadium.
“I think it is important to have your full plan being guided by a proper calendar, but as a coach one has got to be always ready for the unexpected,” Sweswe said.
Tsholotsho has played a number of friendly matches with lower division teams with the only high-profile pre-season match so far being a clash with coal miners Hwange at the Colliery.
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Chicken Inn with coach Joey Antipas said they aimed at boosting the team’s confidence levels ahead of the start of the season.
“We had put up a six-week pre-season training programme and there is not much that we can do about the delay to the start of the league, so we just have to keep on practising.
“So far we have been playing some low-key matches, which is good for confidence as our players will become used to scoring many goals and winning,” Antipas said.
Highlanders coach Bongani Mafu said delay to the start of the league was a poser as players risked peaking early and then burning out quickly.
“We need to find ways to work around that to avoid burning the players out,” Mafu said.
Bosso last week played in the Bob 91 semi-final tie against Caps United which they lost 1-2 and have been involved in a number of friendly matches against top-flight teams.
