Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Rulani Mokwena says they need to play the match and not the occasion in reference to facing his former mentor Steve Komphela at Moroka Swallows.
Komphela left his role as First Team Coach at Sundowns in the off-season to assume the role of head coach at Swallows for the 2023/24 season.
And three matches into the campaign, he comes up against Mokwena, whom he worked alongside over the past three years, whilst also sharing a long history with prior to their stint together at Masandawana.
Back in 2009, when Mokwena was in University, Komphela roped him into the set-up at Platinum Stars, in which the Sundowns coach often refers to him as his ‘high school teacher’ in football as he’s now forged a career without having played professional football.
“It’s happened before [facing Komphela], we played against him even when I was at Pirates and he was at Golden Arrows, even before working at Mamelodi Sundowns, so it’s an interesting encounter,” Mokwena said in reference to their MTN8 clash on Saturday.
“But of course at the end, it’s Mamelodi Sundowns versus Moroka Swallows, so we have to play the match and not the occasion and do the best we can to get ourselves in the semi-finals.”
The two sides will meet on Saturday afternoon at the Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium at 15h00.
