SuperSport United coach Gavin Hunt is now just 48 games away from 1000 games in charge in the dugout.
Hunt celebrated his 950th game in charge in his long-storied career on Wednesday last week.
It was a glorious night to mark the big day as his club SuperSport United beat his former club Kaizer Chiefs 1-0 at Peter Mokaba Stadium when Terrence Dzvukamanja rifled home the winner in just the second minute the game had started.
Hunt, having started his playing career in 1981, was blighted by an Achilles injury in 1992, and revealed how he got into coaching: “In those there were no operations or casts, I was out for nine months, I couldn’t walk.
“In those days you never had a contract – you were playing season to season, because there was no Coetzee ruling (the landmark ruling from 2000 that confirmed that out-of-contract players in the PSL were free agents). So you sign with the club and you are there for life.
“I was out of contract and they said they would not sign you again because you are injured. I started coaching at school, I was a South African under 16 coach.”
As the injury forced him to go straight into coaching, the media in the 1998-99 season, described him going back to where he belonged as the fiery full back at Hellenic. He played for over 300 games for the club under his mentor (and father in law), Budgie Bryne.
But he cut his teeth as a coach at Vasco Da Gama and then launched his career at Seven Stars, guiding the latter to the promotion in 1997-98 in the First Division Coastal Stream, with Dynamos joining them from the First Division Inland Stream.
This led to Hunt being interviewed for the Mamelodi Sundowns coaching role in the following season.
As he opted to rejoin Hellenic from Stars in December in 1998 as a coach, he had a difficult time as the side slid down the table.
In the following season, however, Hunt put together an exciting side which was expected to perform much better and finished in the top eight.
He said to be where he is today huge credit should go to Bryne, but is a lonely job when results don’t come your way.
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“I played for Budgie Byrne at Hellenic for 14 years,” said Hunt to iDiski Times.
“I was a long career, but it was cut short. But these things happen in football. I mean I got involved in 1994 in coaching.
“I never imagined, you don’t (to stay this long).
“In this job if you last tomorrow, you have done well (he chuckled). We get fired and hired very quickly in this business, you just never know in this business and you just have to try to keep going.”
Hunt might have won the league title four times, SAA Supa 8, MTN8 and Telkom Knockout trophies, but promoting Seven Stars was the highlight of his career in the 1997-98 season.
In 952 games (after the SSU’s Confederation Cup victory on Friday), Hunt has 402 wins, drawn 272 and lost 278. He has not missed a season since being in the top flight.
This article first appeared in Edition 123 of iDiski Times. You can read the full story on the digital newspaper on the website.
Source Link Hunt 48 Games Away from 1000 In Charge
