Govinder responds to Gallants ‘politics’ amid Malesela’s uncertain future
Marumo Gallants co-coach Sundra Govinder has responded to rumours of ‘politics’ at the club that resulted in head coach Dan Malesela being placed on ‘special leave’.
Last week, FARPost reported that Malesela had been placed on ‘special leave’ after he was linked with the vacant head coaching job at Golden Arrows.
In the absence of Malesela, Govinder has been leading Gallants alongside Duncan Lechesa, who joined the club at the start of the 2024/25 Betway Premiership season.
Meanwhile, Govinder arrived at Gallants over a week ago after parting ways with the Motsepe Foundation Championship side Casric Stars.
The former Kaizer Chiefs youth coach cited health reasons for his departure at Casric before taking the job at the Bloemfontein-based side.
Govinder suffered a humiliating 8-1 defeat against Orlando Pirates in the league on Christmas Eve in his first match on the bench at Orlando Stadium.
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Asked if there were politics at Gallants, which led to the sidelining of Malesela, Govender explained that he had been brought on board to stabilise the work of his former Chippa United mentor.
“I don’t like to comment on stuff like that [politics] to be honest, I don’t even know if there are politics. I joined the team to stabilise [things]. The current head coach is coach Dan,” Govinder said.
“So it’s a difficult question to answer if there are any politics. So if there are any politics, of course, they are going to affect players, but I’m not aware of any of that.”
Bahlabane Ba Ntwa are currently sitting 12th on the league table after collecting 10 points in 10 matches. They won three matches, drew one and suffered six defeats.
Under Malesela, Marumo Gallants also made it to the semi-final of the 2024 Carling Knockout Cup, where they lost 2-0 to Mamelodi Sundowns.
It remains to be seen whether the 59-year-old will return to Gallants or Govinder will continue leading the team for the remainder of the campaign.
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