Chairman Tshifhiwa Thidiela has given an update on the players and the technical team after Black Leopards bought the Motsepe Foundation Championship status of All Stars.
On Friday, the club announced they bought the Premier Soccer League status of All Stars, as previously reported by iDiski Times.
Lidoda duvha were relegated to the amateur ranks of the ABC Motsepe League after they finished last in the Motsepe Foundation Championship last season.
However, they bought the status of All Stars, who finished in fourth place, and have been given permission by the PSL to rename it to Black Leopards. Thidiela also gave an update on player movements.
“We are going to make almost wholesale changes. Currently there are a lot of players that we have released, well that were released by [the old] Black Leopards, let me put it that way,” he told the media.
“There are also players that the ‘new Black Leopards‘ is going to buy from the ‘old Black Leopards’. Maybe to clear it [the old] Black Leopards is not dead. It means currently they are there and here so we need to also change the other name because we have acquired the other name to this side.
“There are players who now belong to the ‘new Black Leopards‘ which is All Stars. So there are some players, who are still contracted there that we need to take over and there are some who were there that we are still negotiating with. There are some from the ‘old Black Leopards’ like I said we’ve taken.”
Thidiela then confirmed that former captain Peter Mponda has been appointed as one of the assistant coaches, while they are still looking for a new head coach.
“From the technical team, I think we will have changes. I think there are reports that have said the likes of Morgan [Shivambu] have joined another team,” he explained.
“One that I can confirm on the technical team that is coming, he landed this morning from Malawi, is the former captain of Black Leopards Peter Mponda, who was coaching in Malawi. He will come and be one of the assistant coaches.
“As far as the head coach is concerned we are still going up and down. We’ve got a very long list. We are still deliberating on who should we get but in the next few days that can also be finalised.”
Finally, the chairman admitted that the club is going to have to do things differently if they are to avoid what happened last season, before insisting that their target is promotion to the Dstv Premiership.
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“The only thing we are playing for here is promotion. Now if you see that this is going south there is no way you are going to sit,” he continued.
“We want someone who is ready. We don’t someone who will say now we want to prepare. The ones who will prepare where I’m saying we will have a development programme.
“That’s where they can sit for donkey years preparing but in this league the only thing that we are looking for is promotion, nothing else.
“And unfortunately when you don’t get the promotion, you don’t only lose on promotion, you also lose a lot of money. So you need to be decisive when you take a decision.”
The team is expected to assemble for pre-season on Monday.
