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While some view the move as demotion, Mandla Ncikazi reckons downgrading from head coach to assistant is nothing to be ashamed of.
The 53-year-old dropped rank from being the head coach of Orlando Pirates last season – a post he shared with Fadlu Davids as joint tacticians – to now serving as assistant at the Soweto club.
The changes follow the recent appointment of José Riveiro as head coach who brought along compatriot, Sergio Almenara, as his assistant.
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“By nature I am an optimist. I look at the positive side of things and this is not about me, but the club,” said Ncikazi, responding to a City Press question during a Pirates media engagement session in Sandton, Johannesburg on Friday.
“If the club felt we did not achieve the required results and the club decides that they must make the change, honestly, I think it would be unfair for to try and change such situation. It happens everywhere and I accept what is there. Adversity is the breakfast for champions [and] the biggest learnings happen in such moments.”
Ncikazi added that the club involved him during the process that culminated into the overhaul of the technical bench prior to the start of the current campaign.
He said:
“I don’t think it’s the end of what has transpired [being moved from head coach to assistant]. So, I am here because I chose to be here. As long as the club does well, I am good to be part of the team.”
Ncikazi has earned rave reviews from his principal, Riverio.
“This is a new environment and that’s why this man [Ncikazi] is very important for us because he has the experience.”
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In an interview with City Press last month, Pirates boss Irvin Khoza said the departure of Davids, who had requested to leave the club, prompted Pirates to overhaul the technical staff.
“We tried with the combo we had – Mandla and Fadlu. Unfortunately, Fadlu said he wanted [to leave for] greener pastures.
“We thought it’s very important to do justice [to the technical team by bringing in a new coach], to give some kind of tonic. We have quality players in the team. Maybe it’s a question of seeing things differently. Coaches see things differently.”
Ncikazi arrived at Pirates from Golden Arrows in June last year.
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He was recruited by Bucs from Abafana Bes’thende where he was the head coach to serve as an assistant to Jozef Zinnbauer, alongside Davids.
Ncikazi and Davids later took over as co-coaches after Zinnbauer resigned just one game into the 2021/22 season.
The pair endured contrasting fortunes: Pirates reached the final of the CAF Confederation Cup where they lost on penalties to Moroccan outfit, RS Berkane.
On the domestic front, Bucs finished sixth in the DStv Premiership, missing out on a chance to return to the CAF interclub competition this season.
